Immortal Soulmates 3: Abduction
by believer76
Summary: Penelope Garcia, now Rossi, is kidnapped for her expertise on computers while she is away from her family in order for her abductor to make a lot of money from her efforts. Will she be saved or will she be lost to her family forever?
1. Chapter 1

Immortal Soulmates 3: Abduction

Part 1

"You will do as you were ordered or suffer the consequences, bitch," Gregory threatened Penelope Garcia Rossi, slapping her on the cheek hard enough to cause the bones in her cheekbones to crack. Penelope didn't cry out, as she wouldn't give her captor the satisfaction of hearing her cry out in pain.

Penelope remembered exactly how she had been kidnapped by this man and his cohorts. She had been out getting her hair and nails done, alone for a change, as JJ and Emily had wanted to do something different.

It wasn't even that she was unaware of the fact that there was some Immortals who wanted for her talent with computers, but she had never believed that one of them would kidnap her from a public place, because they had to know the consequences of their actions. She knew her family would be hunting for her and with a lot of her and Dave's children being just as good on computers as she was they would find her soon. She didn't believe that Gregory was aware that there were other computer experts in the family, though if he had been thinking about it he would've realized that some of her children would likely have inherited her talent. She believed that Gregory was insane. She didn't think that her captor would be doing this if he was in his right mind. She believed that all Gregory cared about was money. She suspected that his mate had died either before they had met or after they had, but before he or she was Immortal.

She knew love could change a person, and if his mate hadn't died, but rejected him then that would be enough to drive some Immortals insane, as it had happened before.

"Think about what you're doing," Penelope begged, once her cheek had healed enough for her to talk without to much pain. "Do you really believe my family won't find me? Do you know what they'll do to you when they finally do."

"There's no way that Rossi needs three mates," Gregory said arrogantly. "They'll forget about you in time. Now, do as your ordered or you will regret it," Gregory said waving a knife at her threateningly.

"You really are that stupid then," Penelope said shaking her head at Gregory's arrogance. "You really believe that Dave won't look for me or at least won't find me then you really are as stupid as a troll."

Gregory glared at her at the insult and Penelope glared back defiantly, showing she was unafraid.

"Dave and the rest of my family will find me and they'll take you apart piece by piece and torture you for a very long time. It's not like Ilithyia doesn't expect an Immortal not to respond to such heinous crime as the kidnapping of another's mate. I'm sure you know this and yet, you really think you can get away with kidnapping another man's mate or human beings in general."

Penelope said nothing else, but simply shook her head at Gregory's arrogance and stupidity.

She had been kidnapped specifically to make Gregory a lot of money thanks to her hobby of changing backgrounds for her fellow Immortals, but then she got paid a great deal for her efforts. Then again, those Immortals were honest and would never consider going against the gods, Ilithyia most of all. Gregory, she suspected, had never been like that, even before he lost his mate. At the very least he had probably been incredibly arrogant. She was surprised that he hadn't committed some unforgivable crime in the eyes of the gods, especially Ilithyia, by now, as he really was that arrogant. There were certain crimes that would make you lose your Immortality and though there weren't many there were a few.

Gregory just expected her to put in a lot of effort to change backgrounds and then he was going to take all the money that she had earned. Changing backgrounds might have been easy for her, but that didn't mean that just anybody could do it. She'd always had been good on computers and she had hundreds of years of experience doing backgrounds for her own family as well as other Immortals who of course paid her well for her services. She had known that there was some Immortals who would like to use her talent for themselves and take the money she had earned, but she had never honestly believed that any of them would go through with some kind of kidnapping plot, which just showed how naïve she had been being. She had figured they would never carry out whatever plans they had because Dave was a powerful figure in the Immortal world, as he was one of the oldest that was still alive. Gregory, must have truly lost his mind, for him to do such a thing as kidnap another Immortal's mate for that brought down the wrath of the Gods and the others that he had somehow gotten to help him would share the same fate.

Penelope mentally shook her head but paid no attention to the man standing behind her. She knew arguing with Gregory or any of his man would just get her hurt so she would cooperate until Dave showed up along with as many members of the family as could be contacted on short notice.

When she had woken up Gregory had known immediately, which told her that she had been being monitored and came in. He had told her that if she wanted to eat she would obey whatever he told her to do. He had also said that she was his property now and he would beat her within an inch of her Immortal life unless she cooperated. Gregory seemed to believe that he could own human beings, but this wasn't the century where slaves were legal and she was sure that her captor knew that, unless he was as dumb as a bag of dirt clumps. She knew very well that slave trade still went on, though they were mostly shipped to foreign countries where slavery was acceptable and legal. Even though, this was centuries after the Civil War, that did not mean that some countries saw owning slaves as being wrong, though it was mostly third world countries.

When it looked as if she was cooperating Gregory relaxed as it appeared that she was following orders but really she was sending messages to her family. Gregory or his men didn't appear to know anything about computers or changing backgrounds, so it was relatively safe for her to do so. Well, actually, to be truthful, she was doing both. Gregory had given her a list of names of the Immortals that had paid him to change their backgrounds.

Gregory's attitude didn't startle her at all, so when he wandered away it didn't surprise her because she knew that he assumed that she would do exactly what he ordered if she didn't want to be beaten, her bones broken or for bruises to appear along her white skin. His sheer arrogance was appalling, but she was also grateful for it, because it was less likely he would discover what she was doing. Penelope had known that people could be extremely arrogant men in particular, but she had never encountered such a severe case of it before now. She knew that her mate could be arrogant in the extreme, but only when the situation required it as normally, he was very laidback and he was never arrogant with his family. No, she, JJ and Emily had been happy for many centuries.

She knew how her husband thought by now and he would've called on one of her children that was very good with computers just like she was. She couldn't believe that Gregory hadn't thought about the fact that she and her family would have known this was a possibility a long time ago and taken precautions. All of them had been aware for some time that there was some Immortals that would kidnap her, make her work for them, while the money for all her hard work would be stolen and added to her kidnappers accounts.

She knew very well that Gregory or any of his men and didn't give a damn about her or the fact that they were stealing from her. She knew she would be lucky if they fed her more then prison food and probably poor quality at that, as she couldn't see someone as arrogant as her captor wasting money on at least decent quality food for someone he didn't give a damn about. To him she was useful, but she knew he didn't care about her feelings, didn't care about her at all really. She knew very well that she had been kidnapped for the sole purpose of doing backgrounds for people who paid Gregory. She hoped that whoever Dave had gotten to help out would find her soon. Quite a few of her children had gotten her talent with electronics, but it would depend on who Dave could contact on short notice, as they were scattered all over the world.

She knew exactly how Dave, Emily and JJ would react, as soon as they found her and she didn't think Gregory realized what kind of the major mistake he had just made. If he really believed that Dave would take her kidnapping laying down or even JJ doing so for that matter than he was in for major wake-up call. Normally, she wasn't one for violence, but considering that she had been taken from her family by several men she would make an exception this time, so long as she didn't have to see it.

JJ and her were normally, the two most forgiving and gentle, but in this case Gregory was going regret the day he was ever born. She was sure Dave wouldn't mind if she stole every single penny that he had in his bank account or if she kicked him in the ribs a few times. She knew that by the time Dave and Emily were done with him and his minions they would no longer be alive. Murder or torture in most cases was forbidden by Ilithyia, but when it came to this type of situation she looked the other way when an Immortal broke one of her few strictures. Really, it was the only exception where torture was acceptable and it wasn't like this kind of situation popped up all that often, as most Immortals were pretty law abiding, but they also had their malcontents. Gregory would be lucky if Dave didn't torture him for months before finally letting him die. It was clear that Gregory was insane likely from losing his mate for some reason, as that was about the only reason she could thing of that would lead an Immortal down such a path.

Hours later when it was after 2 AM she was allowed to go back to her cell to sleep. She had been fed pig slop for dinner or at least that was what it tasted like and had no lunch so she suspected she'd be lucky to get two meals a day. The only reason for feeding her at all she suspected was so she didn't faint from hunger, even if starvation wouldn't kill her.

Penelope snorted in contempt in her thoughts knowing that she was being monitored. She tried to sleep but the mattress on the floor wasn't exactly the most comfortable, as it was full of lumps with not even a thin pillow. She couldn't believe that Gregory really thought that she wouldn't rebel as living like this was inhumane. She had been making a good living for herself long before she had met Dave and the others. Dave always treated her like a queen just like he did JJ and Emily. The food she had been fed for dinner wasn't even fit for pigs and the mattress on the floor of her cell wasn't even worth mentioning. She would think that Gregory would be intelligent enough to try to bribe her with a few creature comforts, decent food and a decent mattress at least. She knew that Gregory actually believed that she would obey him just because of his threats, which told her that he knew absolutely nothing about her or her family. She was actually surprised that he hadn't threatened any of her children who were all grown up and who could defend themselves quite well. Even if he did beat her she would heal within a few hours and the pain would go with it. She couldn't believe that Gregory thought she was so weak willed that she would just obey because of the threat of a few beatings. She had defensive skills of her own and she had knocked out several of Gregory's men before they had managed to take her and hit her with a tranquilizer.

She suspected that Gregory had been rather surprised she could defend herself, but then, he seemed to have a rather warped view of women. She and the other ladies were black belts in several different martial arts disciplines, though they didn't have to often have to use their skills.

She suspected that Gregory didn't think much of women in general, even though this was not the 17 or 1800s anymore or even in the 20th or 21st century where women still hadn't always been treated as equal. Where he had developed his attitude from Penelope didn't care, she just wanted to go home. She truly believed that even if she had been with JJ and Emily, Gregory's men still would've tried their best to kidnap her and knock out her two sisters in the process.

Finally, Penelope drifted off to sleep, though she tossed and turned on the uncomfortable mattress for the rest of the night.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

Nearly two weeks later

There was an explosion and Penelope looked up knowing exactly who it was that had caused it. She grinned, but said nothing while Gregory and his minions looked rather startled.

"What was that?" One of the men who Penelope had never learned the name of asked.

Penelope wanted to run towards the door, but she was chained to the her workstation so she tried to wait patiently for her family to appear. It didn't take long at all as just a few minutes later the double door burst open and a dozen people appeared.

"Rossi!" Gregory exclaimed in shock. "How the world did you find us?"

"That's for me to know and you not to discover," Dave said his face an expression of fury. "You know what would happen if you kidnapped the mate of another Immortal. I still can't believe that you actually did so, as you know the consequences of such actions. Did you really believe that we didn't know this happening was a possibility and prepared for it? A long time ago, actually, several centuries."

Gregory looked rather shocked, but then he brought forward an antique gun that was stashed in the back of his pants waistband and shot Rossi in the chest knowing it would at least slow him down. He was rather shocked when Rossi was still standing and there was no blood at all. All that happened was that Rossi had let out an umph and then straightened as if he had never been hit.

Rossi simply looked at him and chuckled darkly with a absolutely evil expression. "I told you we had prepared. Bulletproof vest. All you did was ruin a nice shirt, that my wives bought me."

Dave didn't give any orders simply gestured and the rest of the family came forward taking out the other men, while Dave took out Gregory with no trouble and took the gun away from him handing it over to one of his sons.

"Are you okay, sweetie?" Dave asked Penelope after walking over to her and kissing her gently immediately noticing her condition. He noticed the tiredness in her eyes, the fact she had lost considerable weight, her dirty clothes, which were the same clothes she had been kidnapped in nearly two weeks ago, her filthy hair and sweaty skin.

"I will be when we get out of here," Penelope said looking at Gregory in deep disgust. "This one had me working 18 hour days for very little food and what I was fed wasn't fit for the prison inmates or even for pigs or enough to keep a bird alive. He then made me sleep on a lumpy mattress with no pillow and beat me when I dared try to protest and even when I didn't. I tried to reason with him, which did no good as I'm sure you can guess. I believe he's quite insane. He was so sure that you would never find me that he figured he could treat me anyway he liked and I didn't bother to tell him that we had planned for this scenario a long time ago, as he wouldn't have listened. He has quite a twisted view of what women are capable of in this century, especially when protecting their lives from people like him. I think he was rather surprised when I took out two of his men, and nearly a third. I likely would've taken out the last one if he hadn't managed to get a strong tranquilizer in me. I'm sure he believed that the four men he brought with him would be more than enough to subdue a single woman."

Dave handed her the keys that he had taken from Gregory, who was being watched very carefully by several of the family, even though he was tied up in chains. Penelope had the chains off in just a few seconds and when she rose to her feet she kissed Dave again eagerly.

"Do you mind if I teach Gregory a lesson before you torture him for the next few days at least?" Penelope asked Dave who looked at her and nodded. Dave knew that his mate wanted to deal with Gregory herself to prove a point. If it hadn't been for the tranquilizer he had no doubt that she could have taken out all the men and Gregory himself.

"Release him," Dave ordered. Aaron looked at him and nodded.

No more than a minute later Gregory stood up free from the chains that had been holding him prisoner.

"You are a despicable, loathsome, arrogant, small minded, nasty, little man and you deserve the torture that's coming your way," Penelope said with anger and absolute loathing in her voice, as she landed blow after blow. Gregory didn't even have a chance to defend himself and soon he was on the floor groaning in pain with multiple broken bones. "How could you believe that slavery is the right way to go in this century of many wonders? How could you be so arrogant to assume that Dave and my family wouldn't be able to find me in this era of technology? You believed you could steal my hard earned money, that you could force me to do backgrounds for anybody that paid you instead of being honest? There are other ways to earn money, but you'd rather steal someone else's, force them to work for you while stealing all the money that should've been theirs. You are a disgusting, perverted little man and I hope that Dave doesn't end your misery quickly and normally, I wouldn't wish that that fate on anyone."

"You go mom," Penelope heard Harper cheer, causing Penelope to smile a little.

"You thought you could beat me to get me to obey, but not only did I prove I'm more intelligent, I definitely proved I'm a better person than you and you're disgusting, loathsome thugs, you shit. You made me live like a pig, no decent food, no decent place to sleep and you wouldn't even let me take a shower. You expected me to live in the clothes you kidnapped me in and intended for me to be your slave for the rest of my Immortal life. I wonder what you would've done when I started stinking, because I couldn't get clean? Like I would really take a shower with one of your men standing outside the door, as I would be too afraid of being raped. Hell! You barely let me go to the bathroom, which is a normal, everyday function, you bastard. I certainly would have stunk up the place if I had to go in my underwear constantly, as I can only hold it for so long after all," Penelope said in such a tone of loathing and disgust that Gregory and his thugs looked shocked, though none of the rest of the family did. "It doesn't matter because soon you will be very dead and I will not stop Dave from exacting his revenge. You seem to really believe I would obey you, without trying my best to get in contact with my family. You and your thugs are so computer illiterate you didn't realize what I was doing."

"Yeah, it would've been smart to have at least one person that was good at computers," Brooke commented, as she stared down at Gregory with an expression of intense loathing.

"I suppose I'm lucky that he didn't think he needed one, as he thought he could intimidate me into doing what he wanted, which just proves what an idiot he is," Penelope said giving Gregory a final kick in the side, making him grunt in pain. Everybody heard his ribs cracking, but even Penelope ignored the sound. "It's clear you didn't make any plans for me to have different clothes or to be able to take a shower. You didn't think about anything that a human needs. Plenty of fluids, a place to get clean and use the bathroom, adequate food. You expected me to work nearly all the time with inadequate food and no way to get clean. The only reason you probably let me sleep is because you probably feared that I would make mistakes if I did not. All you cared about was fattening your bank account by claiming some else's work as your own and didn't care about my crappy treatment, since you knew I wouldn't die. You figured I deserved no better than that, as I was only a weak woman after all. You figured that I was your slave so why should you treat me decently? That's a good way to drive someone insane at least temporarily you know. If I hadn't already known my family was coming for me I would've killed myself and you would have lost your golden goose."

Penelope spat on the man on the floor then turned away.

"You wouldn't have, would you?" exclaimed one of Gregory's men in surprise.

"And why not?" Penelope asked, as she glared at the man with intense anger and disgust in her eyes that he took a step back. "You treated me worse than they treat criminals in prison. At least they get three squares a day and let out into yard to get exercise. I've probably lost at least 15 pounds, just in the short time I've been here because of the poor food, not to mention there wasn't very much of it. I'm sure your boss was trying to save money, as he probably figured why feed me anymore then the absolute minimum so long as I got enough to keep me working. A person can only take so much before they do something drastic."

The man who had blurted out the question hung his head in shame. He had known what he was doing was wrong, but Gregory could be very convincing and now he knew his fate was sealed. There was no way that David Rossi would let him live considering he had been involved in the kidnapping of one his mates. Mrs. Rossi had tried to warn him about what would happen unless he let her go, but he hadn't listened partly out of fear of Gregory, but also because of his own greed. He knew the laws and he knew how the goddess viewed kidnapping of another Immortal's mate. It was one of the few crimes that could lose you your Immortality depending on the severity of the offence and also allowed David Rossi to torture Gregory at least for as long as he wanted before killing him dead. The fact that Gregory had beat his prisoner just for the hell of it on a few occasions sealed his fate, because otherwise, his death would've been quick instead of prolonged.

Penelope turned back to Gregory and glared at him with an intensity that it made Gregory squirm. "You thought you could intimidate me into doing what you wanted, which just proves that you don't know anything about me or about my family at all. You thought I was just a weak woman that would give in under the pressure of being beaten. Even as a mortal I was never weak Mr. Gregory, as I learned how to defend myself a long time ago. You're no different from those that tried their best to steal my work and make it their own, except far worse. Any man who lays hands on a woman no matter the reason deserves what's coming to them. If I hadn't been so careful to protect my hard work some dishonest students would've stolen it, but unlike a lot of computer geeks I was not unaware that people can be dishonest at least and also downright evil. Guess what category you fall into, you piece of slime?" Penelope asked rhetorically. Penelope flung her filthy blonde hair over her shoulder and walked away, but not before she said to her mate, "He's all yours. Torture him for weeks, even months and I promise I will not object or be angry at you for it. If anyone deserves such treatment it's him. Maybe it will teach him how to treat others, if he is ever reincarnated, especially women."

Dave grinned rather maliciously, as he stared down at Gregory with an intense expression of hatred. It was clear he was relishing the torture that was to come and that normally, that wasn't like Dave at all. On the other hand, the man had brought it on himself.

"Let JJ and Spencer escort you to our hotel," Dave suggested, as he held her gently, ignoring the smell emitting from her. "Let the rest of us deal with Gregory here."

"Okay," Penelope decided, without a backward glance at the man who had held prisoner for nearly two weeks. "I need a bath and at least one decent meal."

"I'll be back soon, bella," Dave told her tenderly, kissing her temple. "Order anything you want from room service."

"Just let me have a quick word with Harper and Brooke then I'll allow Spencer and JJ to escort me to the hotel," Penelope requested.

Dave gave her a confused look for a few seconds, but then his eyes cleared and Penelope knew he had some idea of what he she wanted to talk to their daughters about.

There was no point of leaving all that money just growing interest with no one to claim it. The government as far, as she was aware knew nothing about the likely billions of dollars Gregory and his minions had stashed away. Some of it was hers anyway that Gregory had stolen. Not that she needed the money, but it was the principle of the thing. He had intended to make another fortune off her labor while not giving her a cent for all her hard work, which made her angry. The least he could've done was given her decent food and a decent place to sleep, which just showed how uncaring Gregory was of somebody he considered far beneath him. To him she was just an object who could make him billions of dollars, probably zillions because Immortals lived basically forever after all. Penelope had no doubt however, that Ilithyia would've stripped him of his Immortality if this hadn't been solved so soon, so he would have started to age as the years went by and he eventually would have died. She had no doubt that so would the men that had fallen under Gregory's spell for one reason or another. As it was, instead of a relatively painless death she knew that her mate would torture Gregory for at least the next few days before finally putting him out of his misery.

She couldn't even say that Gregory didn't deserve it, but while Dave and some of her other family did so she didn't want to be present, as she just knew she was going to have nightmares as it was and she didn't need more material for them.

Harper and Brooke surrounded their mother and she gave them instructions.

"That's a good idea," Brooke told her mother.

"I just don't see why the money should sit in the bank forever, gathering interest when as far as I'm aware Gregory has no heirs. I doubt very much he would've kidnapped me if his mate hadn't died or rejected him for some reason. I'm sure they'll have millions of dollars at least sitting in various secret accounts. So much money could do so much good in the world. In a way, it will be an insult to his memory and if anybody deserves to lose their fortune it's him, especially since I doubt it was honestly gained, so it's only justice. Besides, it's not like he's going to be around to spend it," Penelope explained. "This is my way of getting revenge on him for his treatment and also on the other men that helped him, even if they never touched me like he did."

"We're glad you're okay, mom," Harper said giving her a quick hug. "We'll see you back at the hotel in a little while."

"I intend to take a nice long soak in the Jacuzzi I'm sure is in the hotel room that your father rented. I'm going to order room service and eat way more than I probably should."

"Just make sure your stomach doesn't reject whatever you eat," warned Brooke and Penelope nodded.

"I will, because you're right. Gregory starved me likely just so he could save money. I've probably lost at least 15 pounds just in the less than two weeks that I've been his prisoner. I would've thought he would have treated me better as it would've made most people more willing to cooperate and instead he used threats and intimidation, which if he knew anything about me, he would've known wouldn't have worked."

"It's clear he didn't really do his research and considered you weak, which is a mistake," Harper said and Penelope nodded.

"Just because I usually abhor violence does not mean I can't use the the same if the situation calls for it," Penelope agreed.

"Come on, mom, we'll escort you to Aunt JJ and Spencer who are waiting right outside. We can discuss this a little later once you've eaten, bathed and had some sleep," Harper said.

Penelope nodded and followed her daughters out of place of imprisonment, which was of course an abandoned building in a different city far away from where she had been kidnapped. She was sure Gregory had been hoping that Dave wouldn't have been able to trace the route that had been taken, but with so many people good with computers in her family that was unlikely. There were things like airplane reservations and any of her children that were good with computers would be able to break into the airlines computers to discover where the plane had landed. If they had rented a car whoever had done the hacking would've been able to track the route through the inbuilt homing signal that all cars had nowadays.

She doubted very much Gregory had thought about removing the homing device that was in all cars, as it was something that had been started several centuries ago now. It let the police locate a missing person or at least their vehicle much more quickly in the case of a disappearance or a suspected kidnapping. Having a homing device in your car was so common nowadays that most people never thought about it, so she doubted Gregory had either, which would've been one way to at least locate the car that had likely been used to transport her unconscious form.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2

When she got back to the hotel Penelope found a bath had already been drawn for her, by one of her great-nieces who had stayed behind to wait for her family's return. "Thank you, Ryssa," Penelope said gratefully giving her niece a kiss on the cheek.

"You're quite welcome, Aunt Penelope," Ryssa said, as she looked over her aunt critically.

"Yes, I know I've lost too much weight and I am a filthy and stinky and very hungry. Could you order everything off the room service menu while I'm soaking. I'll probably eat most of it."

"We'll take care of it, Penny," JJ promised. "Whatever you don't eat I'm sure the rest of us will. You just relax as I know you've been through quite an ordeal."

"That's the understatement of the century," Penelope snorted before she disappeared into the bathroom.

Everyone heard a groan of pleasure a few seconds later, as Penelope sunk her body into the steaming water of the jet tub.

"Is she okay?" Ryssa asked in concern.

Ryssa was the granddaughter of JJ and Dave and had her grandmother's more gentle nature.

"She will be," JJ promised her granddaughter. "She has a lot to work through first. She was captive for nearly 2 weeks before we rescued her. I don't really know very much about her treatment, except what I overheard."

"So?" Ryssa asked.

"You need to wait until she's ready to talk, sweetie," JJ told her granddaughter not unsympathetically. "It's not really my place to tell you what she went through and she might be upset if I said anything."

Ryssa groaned, but nodded.

"I know it's hard to wait, especially since you love her just as much as I do," JJ said kissing her granddaughter's cheek.

"Yeah, it is," Ryssa sighed. "Still, you're correct, it wouldn't be right if you told me. I'm sure Aunt Penny wouldn't mind, but still, it's her story to tell. I'm only glad we found her alive."

"Yes, so am I," JJ said, as she gazed at the closed door that led to the bathroom with her brows creased in worry. "I'm sure, she'll probably have horrific nightmares for awhile. Also, we know how Dave would have reacted if Gregory or one of his men had actually, permanently killed her. He never would've gotten over her loss, not even with Emily and I as support and neither would we. Luckily, a permanent death wasn't Gregory's goal. No, he just wanted to use your aunt's talent on computers to make him a fortune and thought he could intimidate and threaten her into cooperating."

"Which is not something that would've worked on Aunt Penny," Ryssa said nearly laughing at the thought of her aunt being compliant just because of a few threats or beatings.

"Both of us know that, but Gregory didn't, because he didn't bother to observe our family for long enough or at least he didn't bother to learn anything about Penny or the rest of her family. I don't believe Gregory would've gone through with his kidnapping plot if he had truly studied our family, because he would've known that we wouldn't forget about her and would never stop trying to find her. If he had truly paid attention he would've known that he would be tortured to death once we finally did locate her. Dave or the rest of us never would've quit looking and I believe that if Gregory hadn't been quite insane he would've known that. Of course, he probably did know it, since I'm sure his parents taught him the same lessons that all Immortals learn as young children and just chose to ignore it. We'll probably never really know his reasons, not that it matters any," JJ said. "For one thing Gregory never bothered to learn that seers run in the family, though it is something of a family secret, so I suppose, that's not surprising. Still, he didn't even bother to learn the basics about any of us. I think he felt he could just kidnap Penny and no one would look for her or perhaps he believed that we would forget about her in time."

"You're probably right, when you said Aunt Penny is likely to have nightmares, as I certainly would if I had been kidnapped by another Immortal and his bunch of goons," Ryssa said with a rather disgusted expression. "I know not everybody is on the right side of the law, but you would think an Immortal would know better. I mean Immortals have all had our laws drummed into their heads when they were children and I can't believe that this Gregory would think that he could get away with kidnapping another Immortal's mate. Even if granddad hadn't found them, Aunt Penny's kidnappers would've started to lose their Immortality pretty soon, if it hadn't happened already once Gregory and his men went through with their plot. After that, it wouldn't be more than a few decades before they met the goddess in person."

"I'm glad that seers run in the family and that all of the ones that inherited the gene started to get visions of what happened."

"It's not like you wouldn't have known anyway, since an Immortal's mate never runs away from home because of mistreatment," Ryssa said.

"Yes, but those visions helped us locate her sooner then we likely would've been able to otherwise. Penny keeping in contact also helped if only by keeping Dave, Emily and I from panicking and kept us from going off half cocked," JJ said. "As it is, it was less then two weeks when it might've taken a month or more if not for those visions. Gregory was tricky and did his best to lay a false trail and we might've followed that if not for the visions."

"That's true," Ryssa said. "I've always been glad I never got such a talent, as it seems rather troublesome."

"I have to agree with you there," JJ admitted. "I know Penny's glad she never got the full-blown version of the talent either. I had better go order from room service before Penny gets out of the tub."

"I'll lay out some fresh clothes for her," Ryssa said.

"That's a good idea," JJ agreed and watched her granddaughter go into the master suite where her aunt's clothes were.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

Penelope emerged from the tub and got dressed in the clothes that her granddaughter had laid out for her. Just being clean felt heavenly. She thought briefly that Gregory hadn't planned his kidnapping scheme very well. He didn't have any females among his men that could've watched her when she got a shower for instance. Gregory had believed that females were useless as that was obvious, but still, it would've been better to have one on staff even two, no matter what you thought of them personally. How Gregory had expected her to go the next several centuries without taking a shower at least was beyond her understanding. The least he could've done was allow basic human necessaries, though she was sure he would've eventually realized that keeping her chained to a computer with only a few hours grudgingly allowed for sleep and eating was not the way to make her be productive. If nothing else the men would've complained about the fact that she stunk and she wouldn't've been able to blame them had that occurred. After all, even slaves way back in the day had been allowed to get clean, even if that was by dunking themselves in the river with a guard standing over them.

She observed herself in the mirror and saw how the clothes hung off her, but considering how much weight she had lost that was not surprising. Gregory hadn't even supplied her with a different outfit and seemed to expect her to wear the same one for the rest of her Immortal life, which just showed that the man was totally insane and incredibly stupid as well or perhaps, that had just been his arrogance talking. Also she considered him intentionally cruel. Gregory seemed to have believed he could treat her like chattel, not like a human being and she would've done as he ordered so as to avoid his wrath, which just went to show what an idiot he was. Gregory hadn't needed any reason to beat her, breaking her bones every time and Penelope was sure if she had been his captive for longer, that he would've beaten her every chance he got, even if she had done nothing like openly defying him. As it was she had been beaten several times, just in the less then two weeks of her imprisonment. She would have thought that someone like Gregory, who had been alive for centuries would have learned that you caught more flies with honey, rather than vinegar. In other words, if Gregory had only treated her decently most people would have responded by complying, even if they still were captives. That didn't mean they wouldn't be planning their escape, but they would have given outward appearance of cooperating.

"Are you okay in here?" JJ asked poking her head into the door of the bedroom.

"Yes, JJ, I'll be out in just a minute," Penelope promised.

"Do you need help with anything?" JJ asked.

"No," Penelope said a little shortly then stopped herself, as she knew JJ wasn't the enemy. No, JJ was her sister in every way and had always been there to support her when she needed her to be. "I'm sorry I snapped at you," Penelope apologized sincerely.

"It's alright, I know you've been through quite an ordeal and it's going to take awhile to get back to normal," JJ said. "I mean seriously, you were kidnapped just because you were alone."

"I don't think it would've mattered if you and Emily had been with me," Penelope offered, as JJ came farther into the room. "Gregory has such a low opinion of females in general he likely would've believed that he and his men could've handled all of us. I can see one of two things happening. One he tranquilizes you and Emily just to get to me, then leaves you for someone to find or two he brings one or both of you along in order to get me to cooperate."

"So you don't believe he would've killed Emily and me," JJ said.

"No, because even though Gregory's opinion of the female species is low he wouldn't have wanted to bring down Dave's wrath on his head, which he knew would definitely happen if he took all of Dave's mates away from him, which would be enough to drive him insane. He truly believed that he could get away with kidnapping me and that while Dave and the family would look they would never find me. He actually told me that Dave, you and Emily would get over my loss in time which just proves what an idiot he was," Penelope explained.

"No, Gregory apparently doesn't understand real love or the bond between mates," JJ said shaking her head, laughing at the very thought. "Dave would've torn the world apart looking for you, for any of us."

"That's why I said a few minutes ago that Gregory was an idiot and a moron. I mean we've been together for centuries now, so Dave's feelings run as deep as they can go, just as mine do. Gregory didn't take into account the bond and that Dave would've been able to feel that something had happened to me, long before he actually discovered what that was," Penelope said. "I actually feel kind of sorry for him, as I think something happened to his mate, though whether she rejected him or she died for some reason I don't know."

"Yes, that would be enough to drive any Immortal insane, even Dave," JJ agreed. "However, I can't feel any sympathy for him at all, as he went about his feelings of grief the wrong way. He caused your family to worry about you and also panic. We knew you were still alive, but other than that, we had no idea where you were or what you were going through. We had police at the house as some people who saw you being tranquilized and taken away called them. You are still being searched for and it's going to be rather difficult to explain how you suddenly reappeared. It helped you sent us those messages, but still it's been a stressful couple of weeks."

"Complications that we don't need," Penelope sighed. "This is one of the reasons why I said that Gregory's a moron. He probably came closer to revealing Immortals then all Immortals combined over the centuries have."

"Yes, we're going to have to come up with a reasonable explanation, as to your reappearance," JJ said. "We might even have to tell the detective that's in charge at least part of the truth, as that might be the only way to get him off our backs."

"That's a rather risky move," Penelope observed.

"And we are all well aware of that fact," JJ sighed. "But a wife does not just suddenly disappear from a public place and though spouses are normally the first suspects, there will be no signs of abuse or any reason for you to just have disappeared, no sign of plans to get yourself kidnapped to escape a bad home situation. There were at least a dozen people that all saw you fight off a group of goons and saw one of them tranquilize you when it appeared that you were winning. There's got to be some kind of explanation for what happened that the detective in charge as well as his superiors will accept."

"Even if they don't there is no appearance of wrongdoing from the family and because of that the police will really have no case," Penelope said.

"I know that, but it might cause the detective in charge to dig deeper into our lives and he might discover something that will make him question us anyway. At the very least he'll be suspicious if we ever appear in an investigation again and he might even go so far as to watch us at a distance trying to discover what set his instincts haywire."

"Yes, unfortunately, some people are like that," Penelope agreed, not having thought of that, but she was sure she would have once she got over her shock of being back with her family.

"Also all of us disappeared in the middle of the night and I'm sure the detective knows about that by now, because I believe he had somebody watching the house," JJ said. "I can't really blame Dave for doing what he did, as we were all anxious to find you and there is no way we could've waited around for the police to supposedly finish their investigation or for us being under suspicion to lessen. As it is I know you went through some things that no human being Immortal or not should have to, but just imagine what you would have gone through if we had waited longer. As soon as we knew your basic location we were on our way in a matter of hours."

"Yes, I see what you mean about having tell Detective..." Penelope paused.

"Gallagher," JJ supplied.

"...The truth," Penelope finished.

"It might be our only option, as he strikes me as the type that has a dogged determination to discover the truth," JJ said. "He's very intelligent and seems to be organized and logical. He also seems to have the knack of knowing when somebody's lying or at least not telling the complete truth, but then, I know most cops develop that kind of sense if they're any good at their jobs."

"And you just happened to get one that appears to be very good at what he does," Penelope said and JJ nodded in complete agreement.

"Normally, that wouldn't be a bad thing at all, but considering that we're Immortal and that there is really no reasonable explanation as to why you were kidnapped, because we basically appear to have no enemies at all, so in this case it's not a good thing," JJ said. "This is why I happen to agree with you that Gregory was an idiot, a moron and not only because he has brought Dave's wrath down on his head, but because he made the cops sit up and take notice. A big no-no."

"I have no doubt that Gregory wasn't really thinking at all, as trust me, he is quite insane," Penelope said her eyes distant as she remembered one of her captors rants, spittle had actually flown out of the corner of his mouth.

"Try not to think about it anymore Penny," JJ said gently giving her sister a gentle hug.

"I'll try not to, but I can't promise anything," Penelope said returning the hug.

"I know, we'll deal with the aftermath of this and will be dealing with it for sometime to come. Really, this isn't so dissimilar to what happened to me back when I was beaten by my ex-boyfriend, long before I met Dave and Emily. I got over what happened to me and so will you with a lot of support. Of course, I realize I was never kidnapped, but still, there are certain similarities."

"Yes, there are," Penelope agreed, so glad to be back with her family that she felt tears prick the corners of her eyes. She hadn't dared cry when she had been a prisoner as Gregory would have seen it as a weakness. He had already believed that females were useless anyway and she hadn't wanted to give him any reason to treat her even worse then he already did.

"Now, come on, finish getting ready. I heard a knock on the door and I'm sure the food is here."

"Good, because I'm starving," Penelope said, as her stomach grumbled on cue.

"It's no wonder that you are," JJ said, as she sneered at the thought of what Gregory had done to her sister. "Just be glad I never got my hands on him, as he would regret the day he was ever born and you know normally, I'm not the violent type at all."

"You might feel that way now, but sooner or later, you would come to regret your actions, as besides me you are the gentlest one of us," Penelope said. "You would feel guilty for what you had done, even if Gregory more than deserved it. Dave knew this, which I'm sure is why he asked you to escort me back to the hotel and the same applies to Spencer."

"Yeah, I would, eventually anyway. We just don't have that violence in us for the most part, not unless the circumstances are very unusual anyway," JJ acknowledged, then escorted her sister back into the main area of the hotel room where the food was waiting.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	3. Chapter 3

Part 3

Penelope gobbled down numerous dishes at a much more rapid pace then she normally would, but her manners seemed to abandon her, as her stomach demanded to be fed and growled quite loudly at the delicious smells that were issuing from underneath the silver domes.

"Slow down, Penny," Spencer suggested in a calm tone, though with sympathy in his eyes, "You don't want to throw it back up, because you ate to fast. You must think of yourself like an invalid that has been very sick and hasn't been able to eat very much for awhile. I know it's been a long time since you've been sick, since you haven't been mortal in centuries, but you need to remember what you would do if you had been ill, and had just gotten better."

Penelope paused and knew that her son-in-law was right, so she started to eat at a much more slower pace and her stomach immediately settled down.

"Good advice, Uncle Spence," Ryssa said.

"Thank you, but I still remember quite clearly what it was like to be mortal. While I was one of those that didn't get sick often, there was one time that I was sicker then a dog for more than a week and I couldn't keep much food down during that time. I remember being starving once I was mostly over it and of throwing up, because I ate to fast, just shoveling food into my mouth and swallowing as fast as possible. My stomach objected as I'm sure you suspect and I threw up rather violently, making my throat sore in the process. Unlike some children I learned my lesson the first time and ate much slower the next time. I was seven I believe. Yes, you are Immortal and can't get sick, but you have also been held captive by a sadistic, bully of a man who I doubt fed you very much, considering you have lost considerable weight, in less then two weeks. Also, the way you were shoveling food down your throat tells me that not only were you very hungry, you likely haven't been eating anything but slop and were probably fed the bare minimum. Men like Alan Gregory don't see any point of treating someone like you even halfway decently, as he saw you as a slave and a woman to boot. He saw you as an easy way to make billions of dollars off your hard work and I know you never would have seen even a penny of that money."

"You're right, he informed me, that he was charging Immortals to change their background and I of course, was a slave so I had no right to any of the money. He was being very nasty and I know deliberately cruel in his words. I'm sure he was hoping to see me cry and I believe he was rather disappointed when I didn't react like he imagined I would. This is why I told Harper and Brooke to empty out his accounts and those of the other men, put it all into one of theirs and just keep track of the amounts and we'll decide what to do about the money later."

"It's probably not a good idea for that much money to show up in your account, until we are sure that the police don't have them under surveillance," Spencer said.

"I knew that and I already figured the police were likely involved considering I was kidnapped from in front of a public place before JJ told me, which is why I told Brooke and Harper to just put it into one of their accounts or even several. All of us have numerous accounts at super discreet institutions, but you never know how many of my accounts the cops have found. It wouldn't have been wise to put it into any of the close family accounts either, which left out Dave, JJ or Emily. However, Gallagher doesn't know about Harper and Brooke or any of the children that I've had, as there are no children on our official data."

"Which is why you suggested your daughters accounts at least temporarily," Ryssa realized.

"It's just a precaution," Penelope shrugged.

"I'm surprised you could think of something like that at all, considering what you've been through," said Ryssa shaking her head in amazement.

"It'd been in the back of my mind from the beginning. I knew that my family would be looking for me and it wouldn't be more then a few weeks at the outside before you guys would locate me and I knew what Dave's and Emily's reactions were going to be once you guys found me. I knew at least Gregory was going to be very dead, so I figured we might as well use the money for some kind of good cause, though what that will be has yet to be decided," Penelope shrugged casually. "It gave me something to do to pass the time. It kept my hopes up as it gave me great pleasure to imagine Gregory's outraged expression when he realized that all the money he had gotten though dishonesty was taken from him. Believe me, I dreamed of being the one to inform him that all his money was gone and that he was soon going to die which he had to know would be his eventual fate, even if that was from old age. I had to pass the time somehow."

Ryssa nodded in understanding.

"It wasn't just Dave and Emily that were furious," JJ said. "I was furious to, but then that mostly vanished after a few days and I was just very worried for you more than I was mad. Kidnappers almost never have good intentions unless they're getting a child away from an abusive parent and can't do it legally for some reason. I suppose there are a few good reasons to kidnap someone, but mostly it's done for evil purposes."

"Let's not forget Harper, Aaron, Jeremy, Brooke and myself. I was as furious as I had ever been in my life as you're important to all of us, but especially to Dave. Still, just like JJ that wore off after awhile and I was just extremely worried for you. Unlike a lot of mortals, Immortals are usually not unaware of the evil in the world and while I didn't see whoever had kidnapped you killing you, that didn't mean that there weren't other things that he couldn't do to you that would cause you a great deal of pain. If this Gregory had wanted to kill you, he would've done so immediately and just left your body where it fell," Spencer said.

Ryssa made sounds of distress and JJ comforted her glaring at Spencer, even though she knew very well he was right. Spencer looked at her with an apologetic expression and JJ nodded, knowing that Spencer hadn't meant to upset anyone, but Ryssa was the gentlest of them so such talk had upset her more than any of the others, including herself. Ryssa might be her granddaughter, but she didn't have a tough side.

"We've always known that it was possible you would be kidnapped, because of your talent at changing backgrounds and the fact that you do it for other Immortals. Word was bound to get out eventually. Not all Immortals are good people, even if most of them are. It's quite possible that Gregory was once a good person and then something likely happened to his mate, as that would be the one thing that could drive one of our kind insane," JJ said.

"You're saying that only someone insane and would do what Gregory did," Ryssa said.

"Not necessarily. Yes, that's mostly true for Immortals, but not so much for the human species. Immortals have their bad eggs too and even if Gregory was a decent person before the loss of his mate he always had that darkness inside him. It might never have taken over if Gregory hadn't lost his mate whether that was too rejection or death, but it was always there, just waiting."

"Do all of us have that darkness inside us?" Ryssa asked.

"All of us can react in anger, or fear or worry or hate, but not do what Gregory did, as everyone reacts differently to different situations. You know that your grandfather is usually the nicest of guys," JJ told Ryssa who nodded. "However, the one thing I know of that can make him react like he did when he learned that your aunt was missing is when one of his mates or children is in danger. Normally, he's the nicest, sweetest most gentle of people, but we also tend to forget that he's an alpha male to the bone. What that basically means is, he can react with violence in certain situations like what happened to Penny. When you love someone you tend to react differently to the situation then you would to most others. You'll find your mate someday and you'll realize that you love them so deeply that you could put someone who threatened them to death without a second thought or moment of regret. That's not to say you could torture them like Dave is doing to Gregory right now, but you could end their lives, even if you don't believe you could ever do anything like that at all.

"I never imagined that I could be violent like that, but one day, long before you were born somebody threatened Dave. A woman had discovered our secret by sheer accident, so she started threatening the whole family, the whole race of Immortals really. She threatened that unless Dave left his mates and became her lover that she would reveal the whole race of Immortals. She was very serious to, quite the selfish, spoiled little princess who was used to getting what she wanted, just because her daddy was one of the richest men of his time. Now, while most people wouldn't have believed her, there are some humans that would have just because they believe in unusual things and like to prove or disprove that they exist. We could've had quite the clusterfuck. Somebody could've known about Immortals who wasn't one themselves because they saw something when they were a kid, but they had no proof, just as an example. So say the spoiled princess revealed that they were real on national television and the person who had seen something as a child had their belief confirmed. Now, this person might be honest and not do anything once the belief in what they had seen was confirmed, but the more likely possibility is that he or she would start hunting for a real Immortal and hurt or kill many people in the process.

"Now, Dave tried to explain that the bond between him and his mates was such that the thought of cheating on either of us made him extremely ill and that it wasn't physically possible as he was incapable of having sex with anyone except his mates. As I said though, this woman was a rotten, spoiled, little princess used to getting her own way and she didn't seem to understand that even if Dave went with her there was no way he would be cheating on us, as he would rather die first. All she wanted anyway was to have sex with him until she grew tired of it and felt that threatening the entire race of Immortals would get him to cooperate. She was the type that would've revealed our secret, even if Dave had cooperated as much as he was able, so I had no choice, since she had dismissed me as harmless."

"Big mistake, I ought to know," Penelope said. "Where was I for all this?"

"You hadn't joined us yet," JJ said. "This happened before we discovered you. You would've been no more than a small child at the time this incident occurred. Anyway, I took her out without a qualm and though I felt guilty later I knew I had done the right thing as she was dangerous, maybe not in a violent type of way, but she could've revealed the secret of our race and while most people wouldn't have believed it..."

"Some would have and that would have caused no end of trouble for sometime to come, perhaps causing numerous deaths before all was said and done," Spencer said.

"Yes, and while Ilithyia doesn't like us killing, sometimes it's necessary, so there are certain types of situations where it is allowed and that happened to be one of them," JJ said. "I'm hoping I never have to kill again, though I'm willing to if it's absolutely necessary."

"I can't see myself ever doing something like that," Ryssa said.

"I couldn't either at the time," JJ reminded her granddaughter who nodded. "However, my feelings for your grandfather are such I will do anything to protect him and also the race of Immortals while he wasn't physically in danger that didn't mean that Morgan Littleton wasn't dangerous in her way."

"People that are spoiled rotten because their parents think the sun shines out their backsides can be dangerous," Penelope told Ryssa. "Some people who grow up with little discipline and get into situations where the law gets involved a lot sometimes outgrow this behavior, but not near often enough. It sounds like from your grandmother's story that this Morgan Littleton never outgrew her selfish, spoiled behavior, that she was given anything she wanted on a silver platter. She had never had an experience that made her grow up like some people do. Some people have a severe illness for example and in fighting it off makes a lot of people realize that such spoiled behavior is not the way to go, so they mature. Or maybe they are kidnapped because one or both parents has a lot of money and the kidnapper wants as much as he can get. Of course, those types of situations don't always end happily. It could even be they fall truly in love and they know that they have to grow up if they want to maintain their relationship, because they know that their boyfriend or girlfriend won't accept such childish, spoiled behavior. If Dave, Emily and JJ believe that this Morgan Littleton was dangerous and I have no doubt she was. At the very least she could've caused dozens of deaths maybe more, just because some people took her at her word when she said that Immortals were real."

"People can often be gullible and also easily led," Ryssa said in realization, as she could imagine such a scenario easily, she wasn't naïve as she was really too old to be, even if she liked to believe the best in people like her grandmother. However, just because she liked to believe in the basic goodness of humanity didn't mean that she didn't know that people could be spoiled, gullible, realistic and many other things besides.

"And her father owned several TV stations and she could've gone on the air to make such an announcement. I'm not sure for father would've allowed that, but you don't really know, do you? Considering that he was likely the one that spoiled her in the first place. So many rich parents don't seem to realize that giving their kids responsibility helps them grow up. Sure, spoil them a little, but also teach them how to be responsible and how to treat others and while some rich kids breakaway from that life not all of them do."

"And this Morgan Littleton was one of them," Ryssa said.

"Yes, as she was at least in her late 30s when this occurred, so she should have grown-up by that point in time. I suspect that her parents got her out of whatever trouble she got into instead of letting her face the consequences of her actions, which is why she likely never grew up."

"I bet you her parents reacted explosively," Ryssa said.

"They were devastated and the father at least finally realized that she was spoiled so much she was bound to say something that offended someone so badly that they reacted and killed her on accident. I doubt Morgan ever cared about who she offended and some people take offense easily not caring if her father had money. We made it look like it was accidental and it was never traced back to us. While I regret the fact that it was necessary I don't really regret her death at all for she was a spoiled, little rich girl that never learned that she could get herself in serious trouble if she offended the wrong person, trouble that not even her father's money could get her out of. Really, the Rossis were much richer the Morgan Littleton's family even then and we could easily have crushed them financially if we had cared too. We could have ruined Morgan's family very easily, something I'm sure that the spoiled little princess didn't realize. I doubt she would have cared if she had known, as she wasn't one for thinking of consequences. It was her parents responsibility, to teach her such lessons and if they did so, they didn't take, because she never truly realized how dangerous people can be if you offend the wrong person. Enough about past history though, I think it's time that you get some sleep Penny, as I'm sure you haven't had very much in the last couple weeks."

"Are you kidding me? With a lumpy mattress where all I did was toss and turn? I'm nearly positive that the mattress was filled with straw and probably moldy straw at that, knowing how sadistic Gregory could be. I can't see the mattress being filled with gel or even cotton as I doubt it would've been so lumpy if it had been and I also can't see Gregory buying a decent mattress for somebody he considered a slave. To him I was an object not a human being, so I didn't deserve any creature comforts. You would think he would've realized that you attract more flies with honey than with vinegar. I was lucky if I got three or four hours a night and it was intermittent at best. Sleeping in a decent bed sounds like heaven right now, now that my stomach is full."

"People work better when they're not under duress," JJ agreed. "If they're not tired and grumpy, from lack of decent, adequate food and not enough rest. I have no doubt that you just would've gotten grumpier and grumpier because you were hungry or tired or even both, which likely would've caused Gregory to beat you even more then he did."

"Yes, I can see that," Penelope snorted. "It sounds like him actually. Now if you don't mind I'm going to bed and please don't disturb me unless it's an emergency. Like if the hotel is on fire. I haven't had a decent night's sleep in nearly 2 weeks, because of that sadistic bastard and I intend to catch up as soon as I can."

"Some nightclothes are laid out on the bed for you," Ryssa told her aunt who nodded in thanks.

"I know they'll be a bit large on me since I lost all that weight, but I can regain it," Penelope said looking determined.

"Don't worry about that right now Penny," JJ ordered in a motherly manner. "There's no need to push yourself into regaining all that weight. You will regain what you lost, just don't rush it along. You know Dave will tell you the same. You'll only make yourself sick if you overeat at every meal and you know Dave cares about you more than for your physical appearance."

"You're right," Penelope conceded and headed for the master bedroom. "I won't push myself to regain the at least 15 pounds I lost and I won't be surprised if it is 20 or more," Penelope called over her shoulder before she disappeared into the master suite.

"I'll head back to my room now, now that Penny is settled," Spencer said.

"There's no need to Uncle Spence," Ryssa said. "We need to discuss what to do about Aunt Penny anyway."

"Yeah, we do, but I think that can wait until Emily and Dave rejoin us," JJ said. "Aaron and Harper too and Brooke if they want to join in the discussion. In fact, everybody's welcome, as we are all concerned about her, since we all know the experiences she went through weren't pleasant by any stretch of the imagination."

"That's the understatement of the millennium," Spencer snorted and he and JJ shared a look, one that Ryssa couldn't interpret.

"Very well then," Spencer conceded, as he came to sit in one of the comfortable chairs in the sitting area of the Rossis suite.

All three of them started talking softly listening for any sounds from the room where Penelope was sleeping but they heard nothing, which they thought was very good thing as that meant she wasn't having any nightmares at least for now.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	4. Chapter 4

Part 4

Meanwhile...

"Well..." Dave drawled with a ferocious expression, as he glared down at Gregory with a hate filled gaze. "Why don't we get started."

Aaron who was standing at his side glared down at the man who was laying on the floor with half his bones broken due to one Penelope Rossi. A good thing about being Immortal though was that they healed quickly and he had no doubt that Gregory was probably at least halfway healed at this point.

"Did you really believe that we wouldn't find Penelope?" Dave asked Gregory, not really expecting an answer.

"You must've been very confident in your plans to kidnap another Immortal's mate," Aaron added. "And you only did so, because she was useful to you."

"You have no right..." Gregory tried to protest with a rather insane light in his eyes.

"And why don't I?" Dave asked with a raised supercilious eyebrow, unconcerned at Gregory's words or his tone. "You kidnapped my wife Alan and you really didn't expect me to respond to that?"

"You have two other mates what do you need a third for," Gregory sneered disgustedly.

"You really don't understand, do you, Alan," Dave said with sparking anger in his eyes. "You lost your mate so you think you are allowed to kidnap another Immortal's for unsavory purposes. It shouldn't matter that the goddess gave me three mates, just that she did and I will protect them with everything I have. You sealed your fate when we found her and it was clear that she'd lost at least 15 to 20 pounds and she's only been missing for less than two weeks. This shows a complete disregard for the needs of a human being, as if that wasn't bad enough you were making her work long days and stealing the money she would've gotten. It's clear though that you weren't feeding her enough, only enough so she had at least some energy to do what she wanted. Pig slop, not fit for prison inmates," Dave said quoting his wife.

"I gave her more than she deserved," Gregory growled knowing deep down that he was going to be tortured worse for his comments.

"I can see you believe that," Aaron growled. "You seem to have expected her to work 16 or 18 hour days with very little sleep and inadequate nutrition. Hell! You didn't even allow her to shower or provide a couple of decent outfits for her. She would've started stinking eventually and I'm sure your men would have complained about the smell, if nothing else."

"Which is something you will pay for, in blood before I finally put you out of your misery," Dave said with a fierce expression. "You will go home to the goddess, who I'm sure is expecting you and I know she will teach you a lesson about how to treat people. While I can have a certain sympathy for an Immortal that has lost their mate you went too far and I'm sure deep down you know it. You had to know the consequences of doing what you did and yet you managed to convince other Immortals to join you on your crusade of stupidity. Thanks to your actions they will share your fate, though they won't be tortured, because they were only following an older Immortal who should have known better. They're still a bit on the young side so they'll just be put to death quickly and cleanly."

"You do this and you'll lose your Immortality," Gregory smirked. "Ilithyia doesn't like those who murder others, especially their own kind."

"You try to quote the rules to me," Dave laughed, a laugh that didn't have a bit of humor in it. In fact, it was filled with contempt and a deep abiding hatred. "I certainly know the rules better than you or you would have realized that kidnapping another Immortal's mate would make you lose your Immortality. I'm sure in 10 years you would've noticed that you had aged a great deal, if my family hadn't found you so very easily Alan. Did you really think that we hadn't planned for such an event as one of us being kidnapped? We planned for this centuries ago, as we knew that Penny was popular with other Immortals for her redoing of backgrounds. We knew it could lead to an Immortal kidnapping her for her talents. You would've stolen every single cent she had earned while you treated her like shit. You actually believe that you can own a person and that you could intimidate her into doing what you wanted. To me this just proves what a moron you are as Penny can't be intimidated by somebody like you. She knew her family was coming for her and she sent us messages telling us what she could."

"What!" Gregory shouted trying to rise to his feet, but was stopped by two burly guys who appeared to be twins.

Gregory had heard this before, but he had been too much pain to really pay attention, but that comment definitely had his attention now that he had healed from what Rossi's mate had done to him.

"I see that upsets you," Dave smirked. "Good, because you deserve to be upset before you finally die. Meet Penelope's and mine twin sons Ryan and Reggie. The fact that they are twins ought to tell you that our family has the goddess's favor, which is why I have no doubt that Ilithyia sent all of her children visions, those that had the ability to receive them."

Gregory looked rather shocked at that piece of information and even the twins smirked at the man they were holding down.

"You didn't know that seers run in Penny's family, did you?" Aaron smirked, as Harper came over to join her mate. Harper glared down at the man before her and kicked him in the side hard. Everyone heard Gregory's ribs crack again, even as he groaned in pain, but no one commented.

"That was for what you did to my mother, you piece of shit," Harper growled.

Gregory looked rather shocked again that a weak female would do such a thing.

"Females don't seem so weak now do they," Brooke told the man on the floor as she came to stand by her sister, after kicking Gregory as well. "The little project that mom gave us is all completed, so I'll leave the torture to the rest of the family and I think I'll head back to the hotel. I'm anxious to make sure mom is okay."

"You go ahead, sweetie," Dave said. "We'll take care of this piece of shit, I promise."

"I'm sure mom is anxious to see you dad," Harper mentioned and Dave nodded.

"Tell her I'll join her in the morning, but only if she's still awake, sweetie. For the goddess sake don't wake her up. She needs all the rest she can get right now, as we all know she's been through quite an ordeal. I'm sure I haven't even heard a tenth of it," Dave said glaring down at the man at his feet again with so much anger, disgust and hate in his expression and body language that Gregory showed a little sense for once and tried to shrink back, not that he got very far.

"Did you know you brought the police down on us?" Dave asked Gregory rhetorically not really expecting an answer.

"We are now under suspicion, of having something to do with Penelope's kidnapping. It's always the family that is under suspicion first, but still, you brought this trouble down on our heads because of your arrogant, selfish, childish attitude. Yes, you lost your mate, but you either live with it or you kill yourself, you don't kidnap other Immortals, especially one that is the mate of another just because he or she has skills that you don't. You kidnapped her from a public place with probably a dozen people who were witnesses inside the surrounding buildings."

"It's not like I could kidnap her directly from your home as she was never alone for one thing and the security was really something," Gregory sneered, trying to conceal how scared he was.

Dave smiled proudly at that and said, "Penny will be glad to know that you couldn't get past the security that she arranged to keep her family safe. Of course, I'm sure she'll say something along the lines that with a bunch of idiots like you it wasn't a surprise, as there isn't anybody tech savvy among your goons. Something that is shortsighted at the very least."

Everybody within listening distance snickered at that, mostly because it was so true.

Gregory knew how close to the truth that was, which was why he had kidnapped Penelope Rossi in the first place or at least one of the reasons. The other reason of course, was because he knew she could make him lots of money, willingly or not. He had never actually cared whether or not she was willing, as she would do what he demanded or she would face the consequences for defying him. She was only a prisoner after all, not an honored guest. He had treated her worse than scum on the bottom of his shoe, something he regretted now. He had just been arrogant and stupid to assume that she would obey him because she was scared of his wrath, but she had secretly been contact with her family the whole time without him or any of his men knowing. She had been chained to her station when she was working and he had figured that was enough and so none of his men had been close enough to her to see what she was doing. He had figured that it wasn't necessary and now he realized what an idiot he had been. He had beaten her on several occasions just make sure she didn't even think of defying him and she had been doing so since the very beginning, which made her brave at least or maybe incredibility stupid was a better description.

Alan Gregory finally realized that he had pulled the tiger's tail and now he would have to face the consequences. He'd actually believed that Dave wouldn't miss one of his mates or at the least would forget about her eventually, even if that took a few hundred years, but he should have known better, because he had taken the same lessons that all Immortals took when they were young. He knew about the bond that was between mates, but had never realized how strong it was since his own mate had rejected him. He should've forced the issue, but he knew doing such a thing would have been an offense to the goddess, not that that hadn't happened anyway.

All he had thought about for so long was making himself so rich and powerful that his mate would accept him, but really, he knew that wasn't the reason she had rejected him. No, he had hit her in a moment of frustration and she had never given him another chance to do it again and told him to never return. No Immortal mistreated their mate by hitting them or being otherwise abusive, and yet he had made that mistake in a moment of frustration, before the bond even had a chance to form partway. He was sure that he never would've even thought about such an action once the bond was at least partly finished, but thanks to his mistake his mate had told him she never wanted to see him again.

Because of his mate's reaction it had sealed his hate, anger and the belief that women were weak and powerless into his heart and now he would pay the ultimate price, but perhaps, that was for the best. He knew there was no way he could ever convince Rossi otherwise, as he had beaten his mate on several occasions just in the less than two weeks she had been his captive and fed her on pig slop, and barely enough to keep her alive. He hadn't allowed her to get herself clean, as he had been to afraid of her figuring out a way to escape, even with a guard outside the door, as he had heard how intelligent she was.

He hadn't even provided her with at least one change of clothes and had expected her to live in the outfit she had been kidnapped in for centuries to come and though it was nice, the cloth would have eventually turned to dust and started to stink long before that, as she sweated or bled because he hit her for some reason. Hell! He had barely let her use the toilet. He really had been an idiot, but he had been so angry and disgusted at females in general that he had taken it out on another Immortal's mate, an Immortal that was very powerful and one of the oldest around. Even if Rossi hadn't been powerful, kidnapping was absolutely forbidden and another Immortal's mate or one of their kids was doubly taboo.

He'd always had a temper and had always had a hard time controlling it, which was a problem he was aware of. He had been told several times by relatives that he needed to learn to control his temper and hadn't bothered to try and now much to regret because of it had had lost his mate for all time.

He would soon be going where all Immortals went when they died, back to the goddess who had created them. He knew that Rossi would prolong his death for as long as he possibly could because of what he had done to his mate and he knew deep down that he deserved it.

He knew that his assumption that females were weak was false, as Penelope Rossi had certainly taken him down once she was free to do so. Rossi hadn't had any hesitation at all in telling one of his men, probably a son or possibly a son-in-law, to release her. She had nearly taken down all four of his men that he had sent along in order to kidnap her. His only intention had been to watch to make sure they got the job done, but he had been amazed when she had taken down two of his men and nearly had the third unconscious. She had done so with the combination of different martial arts styles and he had been rather astonished at that, as he'd had no idea that she'd had such skills, but then he hadn't bothered to learn anything about the family at all. He'd figured, that she would be easy to take down, to knock unconscious, but he had finally had to use the tranquilizer gun that he had brought along as a precaution. Penelope Rossi certainly wasn't as defenseless, as he had assumed. She had easily handled two of his men and had nearly handled the third as well. He now had no doubt that she would've taken out all four with ease and calmly walked away after calling the police he was sure.

He hadn't said so, but he had been rather impressed. Once she had woken up in the cell he had prepared for her he had said things that were deliberately cruel wanting to see her cry, but she had only looked at him defiantly and tried her best to talk him out of what he was doing, but he hadn't listened figuring he had the upper hand. He had made a lot of wrong assumptions he knew now, as he had figured that David Rossi would never be able to find his mate, but he'd had no idea that the family had prepared for the possibility of one of them being kidnapped far in advance, several centuries ago in fact, if Rossi was to be believed and he had no reason to lie.

Rossi was certainly old enough to know that even Immortals could go bad and so had prepared for the possibility.

Rossi had every reason to hate his very existence considering not only had he kidnapped someone very important to him, he hadn't even treated her as well as someone would a pet. He had basically treated her as subhuman, somebody that had no feelings or emotions of their own.

He had also brought human law enforcement into it, which was a big no-no unless it happened on accident because an Immortal was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He had deliberately taken out Rossi mate in a public place, in the middle of the day and where at least a dozen people were watching from within the surrounding buildings. He had deliberately brought human law-enforcement into it by his deeds. It hadn't worried him at the time because he knew this was the only time he could get to her since her home was so well protected, like Fort Knox actually. He doubted, even someone who was an expert in electronics could get past her security, not without a lot of time and effort anyway. The rest of the time she was out of the house she was either with the other two women or Rossi himself or all of the above and even he'd had enough sense to not to attack when Rossi was with her. Barely.

"Hang him from the rafter, boys," Dave instructed his sons who nodded eagerly.

"We'll be happy to, dad," Ryan said with a maniac grin. If anyone screamed warrior it was Rossi's twin sons Gregory thought in resignation.

"As I told you before this is Ryan and Reggie and both were in the military. They were in covert ops and they know more about torture then anyone except for myself and Emily."

Reggie and Ryan simply grinned at Gregory evilly making him gulp nervously, all his arrogance gone.

Emily came forward from wherever she had been just then and looked at Gregory like he was some kind of bug that she would just love to crush.

"So this is the man that decided that kidnapping someone dear to us was a good idea. I'm not impressed," Emily said, as she looked at Gregory up and down her contempt and disdain obvious for all to see. "Here is the man that caused us untold grief and worry."

"He actually believed that we would just forget about Penny, eventually anyway," Dave informed his oldest friend and mate.

Emily snorted in obvious disbelief at that. "You really are an idiot, aren't you, Alan?"

The way that Emily said his first name let Gregory know what she thought of him. She thought he was the lowest form of life on earth. She thought that he was less than subhuman like he had treated Rossi's mate. No, to her, he was nothing more than bug that deserved to be crushed beneath someone's heel, preferably hers.

"Do you realize what kind of pain and grief you caused, the worry, when we realized what had happened?" Emily asked, with an unreadable expression, not really expecting an answer.

"Even if he did, he didn't give a damn," Aaron said glaring at Gregory who was now strung from the rafters. Gregory's feet were now suspended several inches off the floor. "He had such contempt for women in general and for the sanctity of another Immortal's mate in particular that he probably didn't think about what he was doing at all. I'm sure all he thought about was how much money he could make off her efforts while he treated her as less than human. You don't treat a valuable resource as if they mean nothing. I actually heard Penny admit that she would've killed herself if she hadn't known her family was coming for her. We might be Immortal, but we can be killed and Penny knows of several ways it could have been done. You would've lost your valuable resource, because of your treatment if she hadn't had hope that we would came for her."

Gregory looked rather shocked that everyone close enough noticed.

"I'm surprised he didn't know that already," Brooke commented to no one in particular, though certainly loud enough for Gregory to hear. "I mean he treated her as subhuman, so what did he expect? I mean really? It's what I would've done if I had been kidnapped for some skill I had if I hadn't known my family was coming to get me. I will be no one's slave or serf, where I am beaten for no reason other than my captor was angry or frustrated for some reason, where I am starved and given nothing but a lumpy mattress to sleep on without even a pillow to support my head. Where I am chained to my workstation, not even allowed to get a shower, because my captive fears I will figure out a way to escape and where I am expected to live in one outfit for the next few thousand years."

"Where there is not even one female among all the men that could watch her while she showered," Harper added. "Slaves, back when such a thing was legal, were treated better than our mother was, unless the slave owner was particularly sadistic. Now while such men existed, I've learned that some were halfway decent from Dad and Emily who were around back then."

"He just expected her to obey, sweeties, I'm sure that her feelings didn't even enter into it. If they had he would have treated her decently. Fed her a larger and better quality food and given her a decent place to sleep at least." Dave said. "Men like Gregory don't see people like Penny as human beings. I've never met this man before today, but I have heard rumors about him on and off over the centuries and most of it wasn't good."

"It's not like he'll ever have a chance to try something similar again," Reggie grinned at Gregory with an absolutely evil expression.

"No, he won't, because he'll soon be very dead and he certainly did pick a very convenient place for us to torture him, since it's out in the middle of nowhere. I'm actually surprised he got a decent Internet signal out here, but that just goes to show the reach of technology," Dave agreed.

"Let's get started," Ryan said eagerly, as he punched a fist into his open palm. "Let's show him what a bad idea it was to kidnap our mother."

When the other nodded in agreement Dave stepped forward. "I'll get started and then let you guys finish up. I need to get back to the hotel by morning. I'm sure Penny is sleeping right now and I only hope she doesn't have nightmares."

"We'll deal with them if she does," Brooke offered.

"Yes, we will," Dave agreed. "I suggest you and Harper get back to the hotel like you were going to do half an hour ago. I know you don't want to be present for this part. Both you and your sister go check on your mother."

"Yes sir," Harper said grinning at her father, before giving Aaron a kiss on the cheek and finally Gregory one last contemptuous glance before following her sister out the door.

"Well Alan, I think it's time for your torture to begin and I intend to make it last as long as possible..." Dave said, as his voice trailed off, as he got started on torturing the Immortal who had dared kidnapped his Penelope. He knew plenty of ways to torture someone, even if he had never had to put his knowledge to the test.

Until now that is.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	5. Chapter 5

Part 5

Back at the hotel...

There was a soft knock at the door and Ryssa rose to answer it.

"Make sure you know who it is before you open the door," JJ advised her granddaughter who was still a little on the innocent side.

Ryssa nodded and called out, "Who is it?"

"Harper," Came a familiar voice.

"And Brooke," Another familiar voice added.

Ryssa took the chain off the door and opened it.

"Hey Aunt JJ, Ryssa, Spencer," Harper said, and proceeded to walk into the room and immediately plopped herself down on Spencer's lap.

Spencer had somewhat expected this, so didn't comment simply held the woman he loved close mentally relieved that it hadn't been her that had been kidnapped, since she had the same skill with computers that her mother did, not that anyone knew it, except her family. "So Aaron still busy with Gregory?" Spencer asked.

"Yeah and in fact, the torture has just begun. Aaron is waiting for his opportunity as dad went first of course. Brooke and I left before it really got started, as neither one of us wanted to see that."

"I can't blame you there," JJ agreed soberly. "I won't say that Gregory doesn't deserve it, because we all know he does, but I don't want to see it, thank you. I don't need the nightmares that would follow, as what I heard while I was present was bad enough."

"We have to remember that he brought his fate on himself," Brooke said sounding philosophical. "He had a choice, as to whether or not to kidnap mom. If he hadn't gone through with his scheme then he would not be being tortured now."

"His contempt of women in general made him think of them as lesser beings," Spencer tried to explain to everyone present. "The problem with that kind of attitude is the fact that it allows you to do things that no human with decent ethics and morals would ever do. His conscious probably didn't even wake up to the problem and warn him not to do it, because it probably didn't have a problem with his attitude in general. Of course, it possible that he just ignored his conscious."

"In other words, his moral and ethics are screwed up," Harper commented, as she cuddled into Spencer's chest, and her mate kissed her temple affectionately.

"Some people's are," Ryssa commented. "I believe that if he had never lost his mate..."

"That it never would've happened," Brooke finished.

"While this is true, it still doesn't excuse his actions," JJ said. "Thanks to that lousy excuse for an Immortal we'll be dealing with the consequences of this for sometime to come. On the other hand, it kind of jerked us out of our complacency."

"I don't think you were complacent at all," Spencer told his aunt-in-law. "Alright, maybe a little, but you can't really expect this kind of thing. Sure, you made plans just in case it did happen, because you were aware that some Immortals wanted to make money off Penny because of her talents, but since most Immortals are more than decent human beings the odds of such a thing actually happening were low."

"Even Immortals have their bad seeds," JJ shrugged. "I admit though, that we don't have as many if only because we're a much smaller population than humans."

"And also because we have mates that keep us on the straight and narrow," Ryssa said smiling.

"And plenty of family to talk us out of doing anything that will make us lose our Immortality," Harper said. "Either Gregory's family didn't advise him against what he was thinking of doing or he never said a word to them so they didn't know."

"Or they didn't manage to talk him out his foolish scheme," Spencer pointed out. "I know most Immortal families are close or at least the parents and their children, but it's possible that Alan Gregory isn't very close to his parents or his grandparents. There could be a multitude of reasons as to why he isn't or it could all be on his end."

"It's even possible that he was once close to his parents and his grandparents, but once he lost his mate he closed himself off from them," Brooke said.

"That's possible too," Spencer conceded with a nod of respect at his sister-in-law.

"There are too many possibilities to speculate about why Gregory is like he is, so let's not," Harper said, even as she cuddled into her mate's warmth. "I'm going to go check on mom, as Brooke and I promised dad to give her a message, but he ordered us not to wake her up."

"That sounds like, Dave," JJ said approvingly.

"He ordered us to let her sleep for as long as possible and that he would see her in the morning," Brooke reported.

"I don't believe that just because dad will get all his torturing of Gregory in the next few hours means he's going to be allowed to die anytime soon," Harper added rising to her feet. "Dad didn't even have to move him because Gregory picked the perfect spot. It's nice and isolated, though a bit rundown."

"Ryan and Reggie looked eager to get started, but let dad go first, since she is his mate," Brooke said. "I suspect that if it wasn't dad who was going to go first they would've demanded to be the ones. They're the ones that have been in the military on several occasions decades apart of course, so they probably know more about torturing someone then even dad or Aunt Emily do."

"So how is she doing, really?" Harper asked once she had come back from checking on her mother.

"At the moment its hard to tell," JJ admitted looking at Ryssa who was looking back at her with concern in her expression. "She had a nice long soak and then ate as if she hadn't in a month. Spencer had a remind her to go more slowly so that she didn't throw back up what she was eating, but she took the advice calmly and did slow down. So far, she hasn't had any nightmares as we haven't heard a peep out of her, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything."

"You think she might still be in shock," Brooke summarized and JJ nodded.

"I suspect that we can expect a few problems with nightmares at least, once the shock has worn off some. However, Penny is tougher than most people give her credit for, so we might not have as many problems as I believe. She comes from pretty tough stock actually, as she grew up on a farm with two brothers."

"And farmers tend to be a tough lot, hardy and able to take more than a lot of other people," Ryssa said and JJ nodded.

"They have to slaughter the animals and do other chores that take a lot of strength and not just physically but mentally. Everybody is different though, so while we all know Penny well, we've never been in this kind of situation, so we'll just have to wait and see. She did tell Dave that he could do anything he wanted to do with Gregory, torture him for weeks and she encouraged him to do so by telling him that she wouldn't be upset or angry with him if he did so, because if anybody deserved it he did. Normally, we all know, that isn't like Penny at all."

"But on the other hand, she had just been through an ordeal," Spencer reminded everyone. "She was starved, made to work long days on very little food and likely water. I would bet money that she was beaten at least on several occasions whether she did anything or not to tick Gregory off, as that is the kind of man he is. She wasn't allowed to look after herself by showering, washing her hair or changing her clothes and that can have a rather detrimental effect mentally and emotionally as most humans need to at least be clean. Being sloppy is one thing, but being genuinely filthy to where you stink and feel all hot and sweaty, with dirt and other substances sticking to your skin is a totally different thing altogether."

The others thought about that and found they agreed with Spencer's words as none of them liked to feel dirty unless they were doing some kind of job that temporarily required them to be. The difference was that they could go and get clean as soon as they were done with the job, but Penny hadn't been able to do that. She had been forced to wear the same clothes she had been kidnapped in and Penny would likely never want to see that outfit again, so it would likely be burned in the fireplace

"She'll likely never want to see the outfit she was wearing again," Ryssa ventured finally, after the silence had lengthened considerably unknowing that's exactly what her grandmom was thinking at that exact moment. "I certainly wouldn't if it was me."

"No, she'll probably want to burn it and I for one wouldn't be able to blame her if she does," JJ said. "Besides, it's filthy and I doubt all the stains will come out. Even without the stains it's ripped in several places and even if those could be repaired I doubt very much that Penny would ever wear it again. There's no point in keeping it really, because we all have plenty of money to replace clothes or anything else that we need to.

"You're right, our family is hardly poor," Brooke ventured.

"No we're not," JJ agreed. "So really there's no point of keeping an outfit that is so messed up it would only bring up bad memories for Penny if she ever saw it again."

"I don't think any of us would be able to blame her for never wanting to see that outfit again," Harper said, as she came back from checking on her mother who was still deeply sleeping.

"Only an idiot would blame her for wanting to never see that outfit again," Brooke said. "At the very least mom was threatened with violence and mentally tortured and that's only at a minimum."

The others said nothing, but agreed with what Brooke had said.

"I need to call Jeremy and let him know that we found, mom and that she seems basically okay," Brooke said finally.

Jeremy was holding down the fort at home, which was Chicago. He had wanted to come, but since he got a little green at the sight of blood it had been better if he stayed behind. At least this way there was somebody at home in case the same cop who was in charge of the case came by, as Jeremy was looking after the Rossi house for the time being. He would want to hear the news that his mother-in-law had been found and that she was in relatively good shape as soon as possible. Really, he was quite fond of her, but then, the whole family was.

"You go do that," Harper told Brooke. Brooke, Spencer, Harper and Aaron were sharing a suite though Brooke had her own room. Nobody had seen the point of Brooke having a separate suite when Jeremy had stayed behind, especially since all the suites were soundproofed.

"I'll come back once I inform Jeremy," Brooke promised.

"It's too bad the boy can't stand the sight of blood," JJ said.

"He's hardly a boy, Aunt JJ," Brooke told her. "All of us have our faults. It's hardly his fault that he goes green around the gills at the sight of a lot of blood, as many people do. At least he doesn't faint anymore like he used to.

"It's not like we didn't have plenty of help, even without Jeremy's assistance," Spencer told JJ. "I think he's improved a great deal actually, as he used to faint dead away."

"I didn't mean it like that," JJ admitted. "I like Jeremy a great deal actually."

"A lot of the family doesn't have the skills to go on this kind mission anyway," Harper pointed out logically, "and somebody needed to stay behind and look after the house, make sure there was a presence in case that detective came by."

JJ said nothing else knowing that her comment had been taken the wrong way, but then, the tension was still at an all-time high and she didn't want to make it worse, so she kept her silence.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

It was just after five in the morning when the door to the hotel room opened and Dave walked silently through. He observed the mess in the sitting area, which was scattered take out containers from various restaurants close by. He saw his daughter and son-in-law curled up together on the rug by the fireplace still fully clothed. He checked the master bedroom and saw Penelope still sleeping with JJ on the other side of the bed. The second bedroom had Brooke and Ryssa curled up together, covered in a light sheet.

Dave could guess very well that none of them had wanted to go back to their own hotel rooms until they had some news.

He knew he needed a shower, but he didn't want to wake anyone, so he would go get breakfast for the mob before he got dressed in different clothes. He had worked Gregory over and he knew that Aaron and then Emily wanted their turn before his twin sons took theirs. Gregory had been in pretty bad shape when he had left, but had still been breathing. Immortals weren't easy to kill, though it was possible of course. This was one of the only times that the goddess would allow an Immortal to torture someone, though he admitted he didn't usually have the stomach for such an action, but in this case he had made an exception. He had been so scared when he realized that Penny had been kidnapped and right in front of a bunch of busy shops. She had only gone to get her hair and nails done just like she did on a regular basis. She had been intending to do a little shopping afterwards before returning home. After this, he might never let her out of his sight again and Penny would understand his overprotectiveness. He knew it wasn't her fault at all as while she hadn't been taken unaware exactly she had been tranquilized so she couldn't fight back. From all reports she had taken out two, nearly three of the Immortals that had been intent on kidnapping her and Dave had no doubt that she would've taken out the other as well if she hadn't been tranquilized. Gregory apparently had come prepared, even if he had believed that Penny was defenseless.

Dave snorted in contempt, as he thought of Alan Gregory and was glad that he would soon be very dead. If there was any kind of reprisal from anyone in the family he would take care of them as well. He did not take threats to his family lightly, nor did any Immortal. That was for later though. Family was precious, even if you didn't see many of them for years at a time. While he could feel a certain sympathy for Alan's loss that didn't excuse his actions and he had told Gregory as much.

He would never feel guilty for the torture of another human being, because an Immortal's mate and children were very precious to them. This was especially true when the children were too young to defend themselves. Once they were grown it was a different story entirely and it wasn't even that Immortals wouldn't always love their kids just that they were old enough to make their own choices, especially once they hit 30. Another Immortal's mate or mates in his case, was another story entirely. Hell, really it was absolutely forbidden to kidnap someone else's mate, to kidnap anyone at all mortal or Immortal, but especially the mate of another Immortal. The consequences for such an act were quite severe as Gregory had learned.

Gregory had crossed a critical line and Dave had no doubt that the deeper he sank into his psychosis he would get all these twisted ideas about what was allowed not realizing that the goddess had taken his Immortality for his acts, not until it was far too late anyway. What Ilithyia had given could easily be taken away, even though Immortals had been around for thousands of years he had no doubt that the goddess was still around watching over her subjects and granting small favors when they had earned them.

Brooke for example had a second child a couple years after the first. This had been during the first 75 years after they had used IVF to keep the Reids happy, mostly the father, right after two of the sons had married into his family. They had all known that the father at least would be expecting children within a few years and the IVF process had been a way to get around the normal 70 to 75 year rule on an Immortal having children.

It only worked under certain circumstances though, like the one that had happened when both Spencer and Jeremy had married into his family, having met his twin daughters at basically the same time. The father had been a problem from the beginning and while the mother had wanted grandchildren she had understood that it might not be possible. In this day and age, it was usually possible for a woman to have a child unless the circumstances were very unusual and even back when his two daughters had gotten together with the two brothers it would've been an unusual event if both families had not had children. It was possible that either Harper or Brooke might not have had children, but for both of them not too, considering they weren't identical would have been suspicious. They would've had children naturally of course, 70 to 75 years down the road after Jeremy and Spencer's parents were dead, but there would've been calls by the Senior Reid for his sons to divorce the women they had married if both of them had not had any children within a reasonable amount of time. Luckily, IVF had been an option, but it would never work again and he knew that his daughters and son-in-laws were aware that it would not.

The next time both Harper and Brooke had gotten pregnant within a few months of each other it was 72 years since the two of them had used IVF process and it had been astonishing when Brooke had gotten pregnant again with a second child a couple years later. Apparently, her comments to her sister about giving her child a playmate had been listened to by the goddess. Brooke had had two ever since, always at least two years apart, sometimes three. The goddess had been kind and generous to his family and he was grateful.

This recent incident was in no way Ilithyia's fault. She had done everything she could to make sure they didn't follow the false trail laid down by Gregory and his men. Unfortunately, they were going to have questions to answer as soon as they returned to Chicago. Gallagher was the type that had a kind of bulldog determination to get answers and in this case that was not a good thing.

They were probably going to have to tell him part of the truth, something JJ had suggested a few days back, once this whole thing had started and the detective had shown up at their door.

Dave headed out the door to get breakfast for everyone closing it softly behind him.

Less than half an hour later he returned and the smell of food and coffee woke everyone up.

Harper and Spencer were the first to wake up since they were sleeping on the rug by the fireplace.

"Thanks a lot, dad," Harper said gratefully, as she ran a hand through her long black hair, which was tousled from sleep.

"You're quite welcome, sweetie," Dave said giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Now that everybody's awake though I'm going to go get me a shower and change my clothes before I join you lot for breakfast."

"How are you feeling, sweetheart?" Dave asked Penny, as she emerged from the master suite.

"A lot better, thanks," Penelope said walking directly into Dave's arms not caring that he was filthy. "I know I've been sleeping for a long time."

"About 16 hours actually," Spencer said, as he kissed Penelope's cheek.

"You needed it," Dave told her gently and she nodded.

"Yes, I did, but now I'm starving. I know I shouldn't be since I just ate a really big meal a few hours ago but I am," Penelope said.

"Of course you are, you have to remember that you were practically starved by Gregory. From what little you've told me he barely fed you enough to keep you alive, well, a normal human alive, since Immortals can't die from starvation, but still, you understand what I mean," Dave gently reminded her.

"Yes, I do," Penelope said, kissing his cheek.

"I mean you've lost at least 15 pounds possibly more in less into weeks sweetie and that alone tells me that Gregory wasn't feeding you decently, even if you hadn't said his much. I'll be surprised if he fed you more than once a day. He didn't care if you were hungry so long as you had the energy to keep working. That might have eventually changed once Gregory realized that feeding you more and better quality would be better than feeding you so little would be a better way to get your cooperation, if we hadn't found you so quickly."

"Your body at least has been through an ordeal and it's going to take it awhile to completely recover," Spencer said. "You'll probably be sleeping more than you normally do for awhile and you'll likely tire easily for at least the next few days, but probably for at least a couple of weeks. Don't be surprised if she drifts off when she's watching TV or something. Her body has been through a trauma and it's just going to take it awhile to get back to normal and have it's normal level of energy. You're just going to have to accept that you won't be back to normal immediately as this kind of thing tends to linger for awhile as the body recovers and this is true even for Immortals."

Dave was listening closely and nodding with what his son-in-law was saying because he agreed completely.

"You'll likely to be more hungry than normal as well, as you lost a lot of weight in the less than two weeks you were held captive," Brooke added.

"That sadist didn't feed me enough to keep the body alive, especially a body of my size," Penelope snorted. "I seriously hope you tortured him for a long time. I'm not a midget or beanpole, as neither of those require as much food as someone who is bigger boned like me does."

"Don't worry the process is still ongoing, sweetie," Dave said, as he kissed her temple grateful that she was back at his side. "Aaron wanted his shot, so did Emily and then Ryan and Reggie get their chance. They can keep him alive for weeks or even months if they cared to, but they'll probably end his torment sometime within the next few weeks."

"I don't want them to spend too much time on it," Penelope decided. "They deserve to get back to their lives and I'm sure that Gregory will look quite done in by then, even if he's still alive and will heal. I don't want them to spend too much time torturing him as that might change them for the worst and that wouldn't be good."

"I'll make sure to tell them not to take more than a week then," Dave said. "I think Alan will have learned his lesson by then, before he goes home to the goddess. We know that Ilithyia will make sure Alan learns his lesson and perhaps, he'll be reincarnated in a few decades."

"Well, if that happens I hope nothing happens to his mate this time, as I firmly believe that's what started him down the road he was on," JJ commented just coming out of the master bedroom with her hair wet.

"His mate didn't die, sweetheart, he was rejected. I got the story out of him," Dave told everyone.

"Well, that was a possibility," JJ said, as she ran a towel through her hair in order to dry it some more.

"So why did his mate reject him?" Ryssa asked curiously.

"Alan's always had a temper," Dave explained. "Unlike me, he's never learned to control his very well and he admitted this to me himself, though I had heard rumors."

"So I can guess that he showed his violent side to his mate and if they will only dating at the time..." said Brooke.

"They had not yet gotten around to having sex yet," Dave confirmed. "Her name was Lucy, and she wasn't one to take a chance and knew that if Alan had hit her once that it might happen again at some point, so threw him out of her life. If the bond had been even partway formed then it is unlikely that Alan ever would've hit her in the first place. Actually, I don't understand how he could've hit her anyway, because normally, we just want to cherish our mates, even if we are only dating at the time," Dave said shaking his head. "I have a temper to, but I have a good control of it and I can't even imagine hitting somebody I love, just in a moment of frustration. It was because he hit her in that moment, that started him down the path that led him to kidnapping you, Penny."

"I can see how that can happen," Penelope admitted looking sober beginning to feel a little sympathy for Gregory. Sure, what Gregory had done had been wrong, but any Immortal losing their mate, especially because of a rejection could have some nasty effects on that person. If this Lucy had just been killed for some reason, like maybe a car accident, then she was sure Gregory would have mourned, but it probably wouldn't have had such a profound negative effect on him. He had probably realized that it was his own actions that had made his mate reject him and that had likely led him down the path to kidnapping her and treating her like shit.

"I know what you're thinking and you're right," Dave said having no trouble understanding where his mate's thoughts had gone, since he had already thought along similar lines. "Don't begin to feel guilty though, because what Alan Gregory turned into was in no way your fault or Lucy's fault for that matter. Alan made his own choices and he's the one that slapped her in a moment of extreme frustration instead of just walking away or hitting a wall. While I can understand being frustrated, hitting anybody is not the way to go and there were plenty of other options for him to get rid of his feelings. Options that were certainly much healthier than the one he took."

Penelope felt some of guilt fade mostly, because she knew Dave was absolutely correct.

"Now, let's eat before it starts to get cold," Dave suggested calmly, as he put his arm around Penelope's shoulders and refused to remove it.

Penelope felt great comfort in her mate's touch so didn't object, even as she ate her own food that Ryssa set before her.

The seven of them enjoyed a quiet meal talking softly and Penelope appreciated when Alan Gregory wasn't mentioned even once. It was so nice to be back among her family again and she'd be grateful that she had them for the rest of her very long life.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	6. Chapter 6

Part 6

Part 2

The doorbell rang and Dave immediately got up already suspecting who was on the other side. "View door," Dave said and the monitor showed exactly who he expected to see on the other side. It was Detective Gallagher of course.

They had been home exactly 48 hours and they had expected him to arrive at any time. At least he had given them the courtesy of giving them time to settle back in. Jeremy, Brooke and everybody else that had participated in Penny's rescue had left to go back to their homes.

Dave knew very well that they were going to be answering some questions that they really didn't want to.

Luckily, both Harper and Brooke had seen this happening or at least enough to let them know it was okay to reveal that they were Immortal. Still, Dave was more nervous than he had been in decades at least.

He didn't really understand why they were allowed to tell Detective Gallagher about Immortals. It could simply be the fact that he'd never stop asking questions and he'd eventually bring the wrong kind of attention down on all Immortals and if anybody knew how to measure a man's soul it was Ilithyia, so since both Brooke and Harper had seen him along with his mates telling the detective their secret that's what they would do. Of course, neither of his daughters had seen very much, just enough to let them know what kind of course of action they all needed to take.

"Welcome, Detective," Dave said opening the door wide.

"I see you've been expecting me Mr. Rossi," Gallagher said, as he examined the man in front of him.

When he had learned about the Rossi's disappearance he was sure that they were guilty of Penelope Rossi's kidnapping, even though the marriage appeared very happy. However, his suspicions had never crystallized as everything he had found out about the family spoke against it. He had not found any serious offenses to support his suspicious at all, parking tickets didn't really count. There were no reports of spousal abuse for example and he had looked long and hard for them. He had even spoken to the neighbors and had come back with glowing reports of how much they all loved each other and how close they were. When he had asked about any fights the neighbors had all vehemently denied any such thing occurring and their responses had rung true. So either they kept their arguments private or not many arguments occurred at all.

David Rossi had struck him as pretty even-tempered, although very worried when they had originally met after his wife's disappearance. He didn't seem the type to abuse his family but then, you never knew.

"Why don't you come into the living room," Dave suggested, as he moved aside so the detective could enter. "Would you like any tea or coffee before we get started?"

"No, I'm fine," Gallagher said.

Dave led the way into the living room where all three of Rossi's wives were waiting. Everyone looked relaxed Gallagher noticed, not a single one of the females in the room looked at all tense nor did Rossi himself.

Either they were very good at hiding things or they had nothing to hide.

"So you made a comment about how we seem to be expecting you," Dave began.

"In a way we were," Emily commented, as she smirked a little at the detective's confused expression.

She had to admit that she had enjoyed torturing Gregory for a few hours before she had turned it over to Ryan and Reggie. Aaron, of course, had already had his turn before her.

"Let me explain," Dave said. "I'm sure you were suspicious when we just disappeared in the middle of the night. You probably figured we'd left permanently under the cover of darkness to avoid being arrested."

"Something like that," Gallagher admitted cautiously. "I was kind of surprised when it appeared you had come back after only a few days."

"Of course you were," Penelope said speaking for the first time. "My family would never harm me, Detective Gallagher. They were not the ones that planned my kidnapping just to get rid of a thorn in their sides, as I'm sure you felt."

"Who could it have been then? None of you seem to have any enemies, at least not ones that show up in your background," Gallagher asked. "I asked you this question before and you told me nothing and in fact, avoided the question."

"I know how frustrating that was," Dave said looking relaxed. "There was a reason for us not answering your questions though."

"What reason could there be?" Gallagher asked, allowing the frustration he was feeling to enter his voice. "I would've thought that you wanted your wife back if you weren't actually guilty of her kidnapping. I see you have her back now, but I have no idea how you located her or rescued her with no help from law enforcement as far as I'm aware."

"So I said we would explain if you would only calm down," Dave said with an unreadable expression though he did sympathize with the detective's frustration. It was clear the Gallagher cared about innocents and also about justice.

"Fine! Explain," Gallagher suggested in a calmer voice, though his frustration was still evident. He hated when there were no leads and for the Penelope Rossi to just suddenly reappear as if nothing had happened about stretched his patience to the limit.

The way that Penelope put her head on her husband's shoulder blew his theory that he was abusive to smithereens, not that there hadn't been plenty of evidence that Rossi's wife had not just decided to run away from home because her husband was an abusive asshole.

No, she had been kidnapped by several men that appeared to have no connection to the family at all or at least not any that showed. There was no large withdrawals taken from Rossi's bank account or either of his remaining wives and it would've taken quite a bit of money to hire four different men, even if you got them on the cheap. Gallagher had just figured that Rossi had a hidden account that the had taken the money from, but had found no such thing at least not under his own name. He'd even tried several variations of the name and come up blank. He had also checked his remaining two wives for hidden accounts, but again came up dry.

Rossi started talking and Gallagher kept shaking his head in denial. There was no way he could believe what he was hearing. Immortals? Gods and goddesses? Clairvoyance? Alright, he'd give them that last one, because it had been proved that being able to see the future was real, even if real seers were as rare as hen's teeth the ability to see the future did actually exist. As for the rest of it there was no possible way...

"I didn't believe him either, not at first, Detective Gallagher," the blond woman who he knew was JJ offered. "I, of course, demanded proof, which he then provided. He courted me in the very old fashioned sense of the term. I resisted though, because I knew he was very involved with Emily as she was pregnant at the time. Two women with the same man never even occurred to me since such things weren't legal back then. Emily, however, let me know that she wouldn't mind it all if I joined them. I had no other family to object as my last living relation had died from lung cancer a few years before I met them. As you can see I eventually just couldn't resist, as I fell in love with him. He was very easy to fall in love with actually, sweet, tender, charming, kind, generous. You get the point I'm sure."

Gallagher had listened to what JJ said and could tell that she was being truthful. It was nice to know that his theory about an abusive home life had been wrong, but perhaps, he was just too cynical anymore and expected that kind of thing instead of a genuine relationship created of love, kindness and understanding.

Still, Immortality was hard to believe, but he was assuming that these four could prove it to him.

Before he could voice his thought Dave spoke up. "I know you want proof as I certainly would if I was mortal."

"Are you reading my mind?" Gallagher asked somewhat upset at that possibility.

"Of course not," Emily promised speaking for the first time. "We don't have that kind of ability."

"No, we don't," Dave agreed, smiling a little. "No, detective, we're not reading your mind or invading your private thoughts."

"Then how did you know what I was thinking?" Gallagher asked sounding calmer.

"Centuries of experience, detective," JJ answered before Dave could. "All of us know how to read body language and facial expressions though Dave is of course, the best at it, since he along with Emily are centuries older then Penny and I. Also it's logical that that would be your next question considering the conversation up to this point."

"You learn to interpret a person's thoughts a lot of times through body language and facial expressions," Dave explained. "It doesn't have anything to do with mind reading, I promise."

"We all knew that you would want an explanation for why we disappeared for a few days and when we did reappear we had Penny with us," Emily said.

"So it was easy to guess that you were about to ask us for proof that Immortality is real," Penelope added.

"All of us know very well how most people react when they told that such a thing that exists. To most people it is no more than a scifi concept, which of course doesn't actually exist," JJ said.

"No, we've never told very many people. I told Jennifer of course, because she guessed that I was courting her, but I was going to tell her at some point anyway, she just sped up my original schedule. I didn't need to tell Penelope as she had been having dreams. Dreams of where her ancestors were showing her the future. Normally, she only has a partial ability to 'see', but it left her open for her ancestors to send her dreams of the life she could have if she would only accept it," Dave explained.

Gallagher looked rather disbelieving and none of the others present could blame him.

"So you want proof of what we say," Emily said as she stood up. "I can't really blame you for that actually, as this isn't far in the past where more people believed in the supernatural."

Emily left the living room and headed for the kitchen to get a knife. She was back just a couple of minutes later and allowed Gallagher to test the edge of the blade before he handed it back to her.

"Now you know the edge of this thing is very sharp. Dave would never have his tools in anything but pristine condition," Emily said.

Gallagher took that to mean that Rossi was the main cook for the family. Probably always had been, even before it was popular for men to be cooks.

"I'll do it this time," Emily offered and Dave nodded not looking at all worried, Gallagher noticed.

Emily held out her palm to show that it was uninjured, then ran the knife lightly across her flesh not even wincing as she did so. Gallagher saw the skin of Emily's palm part easily, and watched as the blood flowed down her arm. He then stared in amazement as the skin knitted itself back together within a few seconds.

Gallagher tried to speak and found he had been rendered temporarily voiceless.

"Pretty impressive, huh?" Penelope asked without even a smile, as she studied the detective.

"I'll say," Gallagher said once he finally managed to find his voice. "Do I want to know what happened to this Gregory you were telling me about."

"No," Dave said shortly. "Even if you weren't a cop we probably wouldn't tell you. Let's just say he's rethinking his life choices when he decided to kidnap my mate. Mates are sacred, absolutely sacrosanct. Some of us would go quietly insane without somebody to share it with, someone who was just like them, someone who understood them on a deeper level then is normal for most relationships. That's what happened to Gregory, his mate rejected him, which is what started him down the path where he thought kidnapping another Immortal's mate was the way to go. That Immortal has to have the darkness within his soul to consider such an option as a viable one, but then we're really no different from mortals, since once that's what we were. In some cases, Immortals have more than one, as I'm sure you can guess, but it doesn't happen too often. I was one of the lucky ones, which means that Ilithyia is rather pleased with me, but I have no idea what I did earn her favor. Still, I'm eternally grateful."

"So you believe that this Gregory went insane when his mate rejected him," Gallagher said.

"Believe me, it has been known to happen," Dave said with a shrug. "It does depend on the reason though. Really though, Gregory brought it on himself because he slapped his mate in a moment of frustration and she threw him out of her life not giving him a second chance. There was at least a dozen different ways that he could've handled the situation and he likely wouldn't have gone insane if he had done any of them. Sometimes knowing it's your own actions that have brought you to a particular moment is enough to drive you insane and this is true of mortals as well."

"From what little we know, Lucy, which was the mate's name, wasn't one to be abused and she knew very well that Gregory could do it again in a moment of anger or frustration," Penelope said.

"Of course, she had no idea that she was his mate and that once the bond had started to form there would be no other incidents. Once the bond is even partially finished Immortals just want to cherish their mate and give them the world, spoiling them as much as possible. Gregory would not have been any different in that regard if he ever had a chance to form even a partial bond. They were just dating at the time and hadn't yet had intercourse. Gregory never would've even thought about hitting her if they'd had sex even a couple of times, the thought never would've entered his mind."

"So Gregory's mistake led the him to going basically insane and kidnapping your wife because of her talent on computers," Gallagher summarized.

"Basically correct," Penelope agreed. "He treated me worse then scum on the bottom of his shoe. He didn't feed me adequately and what he did feed me was not fit for prison inmates or even for pigs, especially when you are used to eating the finest quality."

Gallagher winced visibly at this. It did appear that Penelope Rossi had lost a great deal of weight and he would estimate at least 15 pounds because of her body size. Her clothes were just hanging off her instead of fitting properly and he couldn't see this being deliberate. Penelope Rossi seemed like someone that was usually very put together with clothes that fitted properly and were probably designed specifically for her by some well known designer.

"Let's not even talk about my sleeping arrangements," Penelope added with an expression filled with contempt. "The mattress that was on the floor I could swear was filled with straw instead of gel or cotton and I wouldn't have put it past the bastard to use the moldy stuff instead of it being fresh and clean. It was so lumpy I didn't get much rest when it was time to sleep, as the lumps made it difficult at best. Gregory didn't even have the decency to give me a pillow to support my head so I didn't get a crick in my neck. I'm actually surprised he bothered to provide any kind of mattress or a blanket and didn't force me to sleep on the hard concrete floor, because he certainly didn't care about my comfort. To him I was just somebody that could make him a lot of money. He was certainly sadistic enough to not provide anything other than food and water, not out of any concern for me, but so I wouldn't faint due to hunger. Technically, I can't starve, but that doesn't mean, that food doesn't provide energy, just like it does for mortals. Without at least a little food in my stomach I would've been too weak to do anything but lay there on my lumpy mattress and no matter how much he threatened or kicked me in the side I wouldn't have had the energy to even rise to my feet. Another reason I slept so poorly is I'm used to sleeping with three other people, so without their warmth, their companionship and knowing I was safe in the bosom of my family is another reason."

Gallagher winced again, as that sounded horrible.

"I was, of course, locked into what I would call a cell, as it certainly wasn't any bigger than a monk's cell in some monastery. It didn't take me more than three steps to cross from one side of the room to the other. I was expected to work at least 16 hour days with very little food or water for that matter and if I hadn't known that my family was coming for me I would've ended my life I promise you, as no one deserved to be treated like I was."

"How would you have done that you're Immortal?" Gallagher asked confused.

"We can be killed, Detective," Emily said before Dave could. "It's not easy, but it is possible. A lot of Immortals have passed on over the centuries simply because they got tired of life."

"Its kind of a limited Immortality," Dave said. "We can bleed out just like anyone else if we get hit in a vital spot, one that won't have a chance to heal before it's all over. It is possible to hold the wound closed until we can heal, but you have to be fast and have someone with you."

Gallagher blinked at the piece of information, but nodded, because it did make sense, more sense then not being able to die at all.

"So why are you telling me all this?" Gallagher asked.

"Because Ilithyia wanted us to," Dave answered. "Two of the seers in our family saw us talking to you about this very subject."

Gallagher about shook his head in denial, as he didn't believe in such supernatural beings, but stopped himself because he realized it didn't matter whether he did or not. The fact, that the Rossis and probably all Immortals believed was enough. He couldn't fight against another person's belief and really didn't have a right too. They had a right to believe in their goddess just as much as he had a right not to, so long as they were causing no harm to others or shoving their beliefs in the face of nonbelievers. Besides, who knew if gods and goddesses actually existed or had a very long time ago at any rate. Someone had to create Immortals after all, unless they were some kind of government experiment or a weird mutation of human genes, which while possible, was unlikely, considering how long ago they had supposedly been created. Besides, there is no way the government would've been able to keep quiet such an experiment, not forever. Somebody would have likely betrayed what the government was doing, even if they were under a gag order or at least that was the likely possibility

"You don't have to believe in supernatural beings, detective," JJ spoke in a soft gentle tone. "Just know that all Immortals do, even those that are created because they are mates of one of our species."

"You can do that?" Gallagher asked startled.

"Yes, we can, and we have done so as Penny and JJ were both human at one point remember," Dave said his amusement clear and Gallagher nearly blushed in embarrassment.

"I had kind of forgotten," Gallagher admitted.

"Which is easy to do considering we've told you a fantastic but true tale," Emily said also with an amused expression.

"What about Gregory?" Gallagher asked.

"Let's just say that he'll never bother us again," Dave said cryptically. "Us Immortals take care of our own problems and try never to involve the mortal authorities. Gregory broke several of our cardinal rules by not only kidnapping another Immortal's mate, but by doing so in a very public place, which of course got those authorities involved. Doing something like that is a big no-no, which is not to say that sometimes Immortals don't get involved in police investigations on accident. Wrong place, wrong time situations. If that happens at least that Immortal didn't create the situation where they're questioned by the authorities."

Gallagher had his suspicions of how an Immortal dealt with a traitor, but he didn't need to have those suspicions confirmed considering he was an officer of the law, so he would keep them to himself.

"If you're done questioning me I'm going to bed," Penelope said with a yawn.

"You go ahead, sweetie," Dave said gently kissing her temple. "You need as much rest as you can get."

"We'll see you once you wake up from your nap," Emily said.

Penelope nodded and headed for the master bedroom.

"Is your wife alright?" Gallagher asked in genuine concern.

"She will be, but her body is still recovering from her ordeal and it's going to be at least another week or so before she's basically back to normal," Dave explained briefly. "We took her to an Immortal doctor and she agrees that Penny will be back to normal when her body has healed from the ordeal it went through. Our physical injuries heal really fast, but the kind of injuries she received, mostly being half starved, but also lack of rest will take awhile to recover from. She'll be fine in time."

"We do heal from physical injuries at superspeed, but nonphysical take just as long to heal as it would for a mortal. We might heal slightly faster, because we don't have to worry about getting any kind of illness when our immune system is weakened, but still, the healing is much slower than physical injuries," JJ explained.

Gallagher nodded in understanding.

"I'm sure you know that you are expected to keep a secret," Dave told Gallagher. "Most of us live quietly for a reason."

"Yes, I can understand why you do," Gallagher agreed. "I won't say anything, as you have a right to your lives just as much as anyone else and while I don't particularly like the fact that you went off on your own, I do understand where you're coming from. You are not the only people who like to handle their own problems, though they are usually not as serious as someone being kidnapped. It's just as well you didn't tell me any details of what happened to Gregory, as I would feel obligated to report you. While I suspect I know what occurred, that is different then having it shoved in your face."

All the Immortals looked at Gallagher with respect.

"I know very well what would happen if the news got out about Immortals," Gallagher said. "There would be a media frenzy and people would start looking for their own Immortals wanting what they have and hundreds, if not thousands of people would die."

"Likely millions," Dave corrected, but basically he agreed. "I've seen it happen time and time again in my centuries for one reason or another. The news wouldn't be contained to Chicago alone, but would circulate around the world in the matter of a few days, maybe only a matter of hours. A lot of people would react by going to search for their own Immortal to somehow get Immortality for themselves and pretty soon we'd have mobs running through the streets that wanted what we have, for all the wrong reasons. Some people might find an Immortal totally by accident, but really, we're just like everyone else, detective. Unless you see a Immortal heal from some kind of injury, then really there's no way to tell who's Immortal and who's not. We move around frequently because we don't age and Chicago is not the first major city we have lived in and it won't be the last."

"Far in the past before television, the Internet and worldwide communication containing something like news of Immortals would've been possible, but now? No possible way," Emily said shaking her head. "I have to agree with Dave about the possibility of millions of civilian deaths and that's only at a minimum.

"I have learned over the centuries that people can be very stupid, hysterical, selfish, greedy, cruel and callous. Join a runaway mob and that person's IQ drops to single digits. Mobs are unthinking of consequences and they don't care for how many people they hurt at least not then. Once they are on their own again some will likely regret their actions, realize that they hurt a lot of people, destroyed a lot of expensive property and that joining the mob that had formed was not the thing to do. Of course, some never learn," Emily shrugged. "A lot of them end up in jail and some are never caught. Those that end up with at least a short time behind bars often learn a lesson and never do anything like that again, sometimes anyway."

Gallagher didn't have much experience with mobs, though he knew that not every person was an upstanding citizen. He couldn't be a cop and not know that.

Conversation stopped as they heard someone coming down the stairs, but since everyone was relaxed Gallagher figured it was a member of the family.

"Ryssa, are you okay, sweetie?" JJ asked in concern seeing the bags under her granddaughter's eyes.

"I'm fine, grandmom, I just had really weird dreams last night, so I didn't get much sleep," Ryssa promised.

"After all that's happened just a couple of days ago I'm not surprised," Dave said, as he studied his granddaughter appraisingly. "You weren't really involved in the main action, but you did hear everyone talking about it afterwards and given a little imagination that would likely have been enough to give you weird dreams or were they nightmares?"

"Not really nightmares, granddad," Ryssa said. "Just really weird."

"Well, hopefully, that won't last too long," JJ said, as she gestured for her granddaughter to join the rest of the family.

"That's okay, grandmom, I'll get out of your way. Besides, I need to get me something to eat anyway."

"I'll fix you something if you can wait until the detective takes his leave," Dave offered.

"That's okay granddad I'm perfectly capable of fixing something for myself. Dad made sure I knew how to cook," Ryssa said kissing his bearded cheek.  
Gallagher observed this with a stunned expression. Ryssa Rossi was the most gorgeous woman he had ever laid eyes on. She had long brown hair, but it seemed to be naturally curly, she was tall, slim and attractive, with gorgeous green eyes that could melt your heart. He also thought it was rather weird for a woman to call another woman grandmom when they looked the same age, but he supposed they didn't do that out in public. There were no children on the Rossis official data, which told him they hadn't had any children recently. Probably not in at least a couple hundred years.

Finally, Ryssa turned in his direction and Gallagher tried his best to act normal instead of like somebody who had been stunned unconscious.

Everyone noticed how Ryssa's eyes widened slightly the moment she saw Ronan Gallagher for the first time. She had heard about him sure, but she had never met him in person before that moment. She immediately knew that this cop, this detective was her mate, the one person meant for her.

Everybody in the room recognized the signs immediately and they all exchanged glances of astonishment as they now understood why Harper and Brooke had had those visions about telling the detective the truth.

Ilithyia had known that Ryssa and Gallagher were mates, so had wanted them to tell him the truth, though they had not understood why at the time. Now they did.

Dave was just in time to catch his granddaughter before she fainted. The shock of meeting her mate, especially coupled with what had happened over the last week or so had been to much for her. Ryssa had always been more delicate then the rest of the family. She took more after her grandmother JJ, who had a delicate side but she was also strong and tough when required.

"Will she be okay?" Gallagher asked with worry tinging his voice. He wasn't entirely sure why he felt worry about the Rossi's granddaughter, just that his feelings had surged up unexpectedly and also very strongly. They had taken him by complete surprise, because until very recently David Rossi had been a suspect in his wife's abduction. Now he knew differently, but that didn't mean he had been expecting his feelings to surge up like that.

"She will be," JJ promised, checking her granddaughter's pulse, which was still strong and steady, not unexpected.

"Between what happened to Penny, weird dreams and meeting you it was just too much for her," Dave agreed, as he brushed his granddaughter's hair back from her forehead gently, with obvious tenderness.

"She's always been more delicate than the rest of the family," Emily added, as she brought a cup of water and some smelling salts from the kitchen.

"Which is why she was left at the hotel when we went to free, Penny," Dave said. "She wasn't involved with any of the main action, but she heard about it afterwards, then add in at least one night of poor sleep due to weird dreams and meeting you and that was just to much of a shock to her system."

"What does meeting me have to do with her fainting spell?" Gallagher asked genuinely puzzled.

All three Immortals that were awake looked at each other and a silent message that Gallagher couldn't decipher passed between them.

"Ryssa should really be the one to tell you this, even if that's with our support," JJ said finally. "Hopefully, she'll forgive me for spilling the beans while she's unconscious."

"She's not the type to hold a grudge, sweetie," Dave said. "She'll understand why we did so."

"I suppose not," JJ said. "She takes after me in that way."

"The second she looked at you directly in the face she knew that you were her mate," Emily said bluntly to Gallagher.

"None of us understood until that happened why the goddess wanted us to tell you about Immortals, now we do. If not for that vision we would've kept giving you the runaround, until you eventually gave up getting any answers out of us, though I'm sure you still would've had your suspicions," Dave added with a chuckle. "Ilithyia would have known that the two of you were mates and I'm sure Penny would've seen the connection between you if she was awake."

"You mean we're supposed to be soulmates?" Gallagher sputtered in astonishment trying to absorb information he had been given in the last five minutes.

"Yes, Detective," Dave said turning to face the man, "and if you hurt her in anyway, especially by rejection you will regret the day you were ever born. Ryssa has always been delicate, not healthwise of course, but in her personality and the way she reacts to things. She was simply overwhelmed, with all that's happened in less then a week. Her aunt was kidnapped, she insisted on coming along on the mission, though at least she was sensible and agreed to stay in the hotel room and wait for our return, then she saw the condition her aunt was in when she appeared in the room, which would've been a shock to her. She doesn't really understand how people can be so cruel to each other, not deep in her heart. Finally, meeting you was just too much for her so she fainted."

"Dave," JJ murmured her gentle tone of reprimand made Dave look slightly ashamed at the threat he had delivered.

"She's right, Dave," Emily said. "You have to give the detective a chance to absorb what he has learned, before you start delivering threats. I know you just want to protect Ryssa, but she wouldn't appreciate you threatening her mate. Ryssa is stronger than most of us give her credit for, though she can be overwhelmed more easily."

"I know," Dave said finally, his shoulders slumping.

"Look, I know you just want to protect your granddaughter, which I can understand, since she just seems like the type that needs that protection," Gallagher said. "But both your wives are right I need time to think. First off, I'm going to have to figure out a way to write a report without lying to much about your wife's return. It's not like I can tell them the truth, as for one thing my superiors would think I was losing it if I mentioned Immortality. For another, I promised I wouldn't say anything, and since I now know that you weren't involved in your wife's abduction that's an easy promise for me to keep. After that, maybe I'll have time to think about me and your granddaughter being my mate, but first things first."

"She'll never be truly happy again without you, Detective," Dave nearly pleaded.

"Give the man time to think, at least a week or so," JJ gently chastised.

"That should do it," Gallagher agreed. "I'll be back in a week, once things settle down. At least this case has a happy ending as many times kidnappings don't end so well."

"Believe me, all of us are well aware of that fact," Dave finally said with a slight quirk of his lips. "We'll see you in a week. I doubt we could drag Ryssa out of the city, until she has a chance to at least talk to you. Believe me, she'll be here a week from now. She's not going anywhere until you either acknowledge the bond or reject it."

Dave showed the detective out and once he had disappeared closed the front door softly.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	7. Chapter 7

Part 7

"You just let him go?" Ryssa wailed.

"It's not like we can keep him prisoner, honey," JJ told her granddaughter, putting a calming hand on Ryssa's shoulder. "He would be missed pretty quickly if we had basically kidnapped him."

"He promised to return in a week and if he doesn't keep his promise your Aunt Penny can track him down very easily," Emily told Ryssa who looked a little reassured at that.

"Even if he wasn't a cop, any normal person, unless he was homeless or something would be missed, eventually, as your grandmother suggested," Dave added. "I understand your feelings very well, but he's an honorable man and if he said he was going to return in a week then he will. He needs to let things settle down, needs time to think before he even thinks about getting involved with people that he was just investigating for kidnapping. He now knows that we didn't have anything to do with your aunt's kidnapping, but the family is usually the first suspect particularly the spouse, even if in our case there are three spouses instead of just one. You get my point."

"I do," Ryssa admitted more calmly. "It's just that I've waited over a hundred years to meet my mate and when I do I faint. I wanted to make a good impression not faint like a weakling."

"Ryssa, you're not a weakling," JJ protested hugging her granddaughter close. "Your body and your mind simply work differently that's all. You got your gentle nature from me, but I have a tougher side as well, one that you didn't happen to inherit. That's just the way it goes sometimes, sweetie. Genetics are a tricky area of science, even in this day and age."

"Detective Gallagher didn't seem to think that you were a weakling at all and in fact he was worried about you. All he said was that he needed time to think before he even thought about getting involved with our family, even you. You have to remember that we were just suspects in Penny's kidnapping," Dave reminded Ryssa gently. "To get involved with us while not unethical precisely, considering we were just suspects it still wouldn't look right. For somebody like Gallagher, well, let's just say that cops like him don't usually get involved with somebody who's just been a suspect and while you weren't a suspect yourself, you're still directly related to the family that was."

"That doesn't mean that Gallagher won't make an exception in this case," JJ said. "He seemed rather concerned about you actually and he's a smart man. He will realize very quickly that he will be happier with you in his life."

"I don't think he really wanted to leave, but had to at least temporarily," Emily said.

"If he doesn't show up in a week your aunt can find his address I promise, and you can show up at his door. I doubt he'll turn you away," Dave added.

Ryssa giggled at that as she doubted he would either, not once they were face-to-face when she wasn't unconscious.

"Now I believe you wanted to get something to eat," Dave suggested changing the subject, now that his granddaughter seemed to be cheering up and her crying jag seemed to be over.

"Now that you mention it I am hungry," Ryssa said.

"Why don't I fix you one of your favorite dishes," Dave offered.

"Sounds good," Ryssa agreed knowing that her granddad was worried about her. In fact, the whole family was really, mostly because she had always been more delicate mentally and emotionally anyway. She knew very well that it just happened that way sometimes, but it could also be a pain when she wasn't as tough as the rest of her family.

Still, she had accepted long ago that that was just the way she had been made.

"I think we can all use something to eat," JJ calmly suggested, as she put an arm around Ryssa's shoulders affectionately.

"That sounds like a good idea," Dave agreed kissing his granddaughter's forehead, as he headed for the kitchen the rest of his family following.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

Exactly a week later there was a knock on the door in right after lunch and Dave stopped his granddaughter from answering it.

Dave checked the monitor and made sure it was a detective before he opened the door.

"Well, I'm glad to see you kept your word, detective," Dave said as soon as he had opened the front door. "Ryssa's been rather anxious for the last few days."

"I can understand that," Gallagher admitted. "Meeting your soulmate is apparently a big thing for you Immortals."

"You have no idea," Dave said, smiling a little. "I'll have to tell you sometime how Emily and I found JJ and Penny, but for now Ryssa is waiting for you. I only hope your decision is not rejection is that would literally destroy her. Her family will always support her of course, but we can't keep an eye on her 24 hours a day, not for centuries anyway. Eventually we would let our guard down and I fear what would happen when we did."

"You don't have to worry so much," Gallagher said and Dave said nothing for a moment, but he was certainly encouraged at that statement.

"I'm her grandfather, I've always worried about Ryssa in particular. As I said earlier she's more delicate mentally and emotionally anyway then any of the rest of the family. I know she doesn't look it as she got her father's height and his lightly muscled frame, but she can just be overwhelmed more easily."

Considering Ryssa was just over 6 feet in height and appeared to have muscles in her arms at least Gallagher understood what Rossi meant about not looking delicate. That didn't mean however, that on the inside she wasn't just that, even if she didn't look it.

"She's certainly more emotional than any of our other children once they are grown-up that is, but that's just the way she is," Dave said.

Gallagher had been about two object to Rossi's words when the man had finished his sentence, so said nothing. He should have realized that as Ryssa's grandfather he would accept for who she was, but the urge to protect her even in from my someone speaking negatively about her had risen up within him without any warning. He had it bad and he knew it. He really hadn't even met her yet, other then for a few brief seconds before she had fainted.

However, Gallagher also knew that not all families got along as well as this one. They all seemed very close, but then most families didn't live for many centuries either. He would bet his last dollar that at least most Immortal families truly knew how to love their children or their grandchildren. He doubted very much that most Immortal would abandon their children unless like Gregory they broke the laws of their goddess. He doubted for instance that the parents of an Immortal would abandon a child if they liked their own sex just as an example. In fact, for all he knew having a mate of your own sex might be common among Immortals. He would have to remember to ask Ryssa or perhaps her grandfather sometime once he got to know them better of course.

"You came back," Ryssa said, rising to her feet once he and his escort had reached the living room.

"You doubted I would, my lady?" Gallagher asked with a slight quirk of his lips, to show that he was joking.

Ryssa giggled and the rest of the family including in Dave's wife Penelope was watching this.

"We'll leave you two alone," Dave suggested, but Gallagher knew it was really a gently worded command.

Gallagher noticed that nobody protested Dave words and simply vanished into other parts of the house without a word.

Well, that just showed how much control Rossi had over his family, and also that they trusted him to not let anybody in the house come to harm, Gallagher thought in amusement. Rossi hadn't even raised his voice, simply calmly suggested that the two of them needed to be alone.

"Well, I didn't even get to introduce myself before I fainted on you," Ryssa said. "I'm sorry about that by the way."

"It's okay," Gallagher promised. "If there's one thing I've learned as a cop is that you just have to accept people for the way they are. You can't help it if you faint when you've been under a lot of stress as your grandfather was explaining while you were unconscious. Your aunt had just been kidnapped, you insisted on going along, even if you weren't part of the main mission. Then you saw what kind of shape she was in when they finally managed to rescue her and to top that off you had been having weird dreams, so meeting me was just too much. Everybody is different in how they react to things. Some people can take any amount of stress and handle it, but your circulatory system just isn't designed like that. This doesn't make you weak and anybody who believes that, well, they aren't worth knowing. If I had waited a few more days you might not have fainted when you met me, as you would've had a chance to deal with the stress you had been under in your own way, but neither one of us knew that we were mates, now did we?"

"No, I suppose not," Ryssa admitted feeling better about the situation then she had previously. Her family had told her basically the same thing on several occasions over the last week, but it just seemed like a family was supposed to try to make you feel better, but she took her mate's words differently.

"You can't help that you fainted when you've been under too much stress as that's just the way your body was made," Gallagher said.

"Well, normally, I don't faint very much, but I suppose the situation recently, was pretty unusual. Usually, life is nice and peaceful, though still stressful," Ryssa said.

"Yes, you're very lucky that it ended so well, as a lot of times kidnappings don't you know. Luckily, for you, this Gregory didn't want the death of your aunt. He just wanted for her to work for him, whether or not she was willing."

"I know that," Ryssa said. "Humans are a messed up species and Immortals are no different, even if we have fewer that cause trouble like that."

"That's only because I suspect your population is smaller," Gallagher said.

"Yeah, it is. That's the way that Ilithyia had to arrange things. She knew that if we had children as easily as mortals that we would soon overrun their population. Not all Immortals are responsible just like not all mortals are. This is especially true when they're young, before they realize that being irresponsible isn't the way to go, which some never do."

"Yes, the young are often irresponsible," Gallagher said dryly causing Ryssa to giggle.

"Yes, I know that's true for a both Immortals and mortals alike," Ryssa agreed. "I might look young but then so does every Immortal, but really, I'm over hundred, just so you know."

"You sure don't look at it, but I know that your grandparents don't really look it either. If I hadn't been told and had it demonstrated I never would have believed your grandfather when he told me his age."

"Most people wouldn't," Ryssa agreed. "A demonstration is nearly always necessary, particularly in this century. There have been a few that have believed without that, but then, they had a rather unusual view of life. They had rather unusual ideas and believed in things that most people didn't. However, most mortals believe in things based in reality not things that seem to come straight out of fantasy."

The two continued to talk sitting side-by-side and it wasn't long before Gallagher realized that Ryssa was a perfect match for him. He couldn't help but start to believe in this goddess that the whole family believed in. Normally, he was one to accept other peoples beliefs, but not believe in them himself. However, how else would the Rossis have known to tell him about Immortality if someone hadn't been sending the seers in the family visions. That wasn't to say that they couldn't make a decision on their own, but that was a rather risky proposition, in some situations like the recent one, since none of the Rossis had any idea how he would respond. They might be able to read people pretty easily, but that didn't mean that he would have reacted like they thought he would. Sometimes he had even been surprised by how some of the victims and witnesses had reacted when he had questioned them and he was a pretty good people reader, but compared to the Rossis who had been around for centuries he was just a baby in the art of reading people's body language and facial expressions. He remembered how David Rossi had almost seemed to read his mind a few days ago, but really, it was just his familiarity with how people reacted to most situations. He doubted that David Rossi was surprised very often by peoples reactions, but it likely did happen occasionally.

"How about dinner?" Gallagher suggested when he noticed the time.

"That sounds just fine," Ryssa smiled, an expression that lit up her face. "I hope you're not playing on anywhere fancy tonight."

"No I'm taking you to my favorite place," Gallagher said. "It's very casual as I'm not usually a fancy place type person."

"Neither am I, though I have been a few times with my parents and my grandparents," Ryssa said. "Still, I prefer places that are casual, but where the food is good."

"Well, that's another point we have in common," Gallagher said.

"Yes, it is," Ryssa agreed, no longer nervous and much more relaxed and she had been originally. She should have known that she and her mate would get along splendidly. They had to have at least some points in common if they really were mates. It usually was a lot of different things not just a few that two people had in common.

"I'll just go tell my family that we are going out for dinner and then I'll be back, so I'll meet you at the front door," Ryssa said.

"I'll be waiting," Gallagher promised, as he boldly kiss her cheek, causing her to blush. If there was one thing Gallagher had never lacked it was self-confidence.

Ryssa disappeared up the stairs and Gallagher rose and headed for the front door to wait on his date.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

"See, Dave, there was no reason for you to interfere," JJ scolded her mate lightly. "Things seem to be going fine. Gallagher isn't the type that listens to threats."

"Maybe not," Dave shrugged unrepentantly.

"There was no reason to threaten, the detective," Penelope said, her disapproval clear. "He just needed some time to think and for things to die down a little. I know that Ryssa has always been one that seems to need protection, but really she's quite capable."

"I know," Dave admitted. "I'm glad things are going so well and I truly hope they continue too. Ryssa would be much stronger with someone she could depend on all the time who will be with her through the centuries, Gallagher will give her confidence for one thing. Her parents and her grandparents love her and are always happy to see her, but we also have our own lives. We can't be with her 24 hours a day and Ryssa is just one of those people that doesn't do well alone. She needs someone that will always be there, not just someone who visits every once in awhile, but someone who is there consistently. When the two of them do get together then I think she'll be a much happier person as a result."

"But aren't all Immortals happier when they discover their mate?" asked JJ.

"Yes, they are, but they also do well on their own for the most part until those mates are found," Dave explained. "They get lonely sure, but they just handle it better until they find a mate of their own. Of course, occasionally, an Immortal's mate dies for whatever reason."

"I think I understand the point Dave's trying to make," Emily said. "Ryssa is just one of those people that doesn't have as much confidence in herself as the rest of the family does. She isn't physically weak, but her mental processes are different from the rest of us. Some people just don't handle stress as well as others and Ryssa's just one of them. Gallagher will help boost her confidence immeasurably and perhaps she'll handle situations just like we had to recently better with him at her side."  
"And what will Gallagher get out of this?" Penelope asked.

"I don't know for sure, as I don't know him that well, though I would like to, but I suspect it will make him a better cop. He'll have a reason to get out there every day and stop crime. Cops can become disenchanted with their job, so it'll help to have somebody to come home to, somebody that encourages you to be as good as you can be, so that they'll be proud of you, as going into work every day can be rather tedious. Humans and Immortals both need someone that understand them, that will truly listen to them when they have a problem or for any other reason. Someone that will not consider any problems they have an annoyance or just brush whatever problem it is to the side considering it unimportant enough to take time to deal with. Someone they can depend on for anything and in anyway," Dave said.

"Just like we do for each other," JJ said.

"Exactly, even if we don't have jobs, though we could if we wanted to," Dave said. "I was never really lonely, because I always had Emily, though I always knew that something was missing. However, plenty of Immortals are lonely before they find their mate. I'm well aware that I was very lucky that I always had Emily, so neither of us ever ha a chance to be lonely. Ryssa just doesn't handle that loneliness very well that's all, she's just not designed that way. It doesn't help that she just has a quieter personality then most of the rest of the family. She likes to be seen, but not heard. She actually reminds me a little bit of Spencer, or like he used to be right after he joined our family. Quieter more self-contained, tends to fade into the background. I truly believe that she'll become a much stronger person with Gallagher in her life."

"You're probably right," Penelope decided, because Dave usually was right about such things.

"You just wait and see," Dave said smiling.

"You don't have to be so smug about it," JJ chastized mildly.

Dave said nothing, knowing it would only get him in trouble and JJ sighed in exasperation.

"He has a right to be smug if he wants to," Emily told JJ smiling. "At least he doesn't let it get out-of-control and is only smug on rare occasions."

"I suppose so," JJ conceded. "So you really think Ryssa's going to be alright?"

"So long as her relationship with Gallagher progresses then she will be, but as I told the detective if they don't actually mate, well, I know Ryssa will never be happy ever again, just like any immortal who lost their mate. However, Gallagher is an honorable man and he'll do the right thing. I can already tell he was developing feelings for her and I expect that to continue. If what I suspect is true then I suspect they'll date for a few months just to make it look good then mate."

"You don't think he's a commitment phobic then, like so many people are?" Penelope asked.

"If he is I suspect that his feeling for Ryssa will override any objections, but no, I don't think that's his problem. I think he never married or at least don't believe he is, because he's never found the right person. I believe that he's just one of those people that is very careful about relationships. I didn't see a wedding ring anyway, even though I know a lot of men don't wear them in this century," Dave said. "Still, he strikes me as rather traditional, so I suspect that he'll wear a ring when he does get married."

"No, he's not married and never has been," Penelope said. "He also has a sterling record of solving cases. He's one of the best detectives on the force."

The whole family looked at her and she shrugged blushing a little. "I did a background check just to be safe, okay? From what I can tell he's a good man, but a background check doesn't tell you everything you know?"

"Yes, he is a good man," Dave said with certainty. "I don't need a background check to tell me that. Just talking to him confirms that for me, not that that doesn't mean he doesn't have a skeleton or two in his closet. Some kind of family tragedy for example. We didn't have computers back when I was born and you had to learn how to make judgment calls. Not that checking his background hurts any, just to make sure."

"We'll have to see how things go," JJ murmured.

"You're not to interfere. You can offer Ryssa advice, but you are not to interfere in their relationship," Dave commanded in a normal tone of voice, but everyone knew that Dave's commands, even ones not worded as such, were to be obeyed. Just because it was phrased in a polite tone didn't mean it wasn't a command.

"I would never do that," JJ protested and Dave looked at her. "Alright, maybe, I would, as Ryssa just seems to need protection from the big bad world. I know she's not innocent, she can't be over a hundred and be totally innocent, she just seems like it."

"Some people do, even when they're not," Penelope pointed out and JJ nodded, having already known this. "Ryssa's just one of them that's all."

"I know, I've met a few people like that," JJ agreed.

"So have I and so has everyone in this room. Most Immortals have met at least one or two people like that," Emily said. "Ryssa just takes after that mold and a lot of people will try to take advantage of her and be surprised when she's not as innocent as she seems."

"I think it's time we change the subject. Ryssa will be fine and we can expect to hear about an engagement in a few months time I'm sure," Dave suggested gently.

The others fell silent and then changed the subject after a few moments, as they knew Dave was right.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	8. Chapter 8

Part 8

Epilogue 1

"Welcome to the family, detective," Dave congratulated Gallagher on his engagement to his granddaughter.

It was several months later and the whole family had been expecting Gallagher and Ryssa to announce their engagement any day now.

"Thank you," Gallagher said smiling. "I had given up on marriage a long time ago. After all, I'm over 40 and while I know people can live a long time now..."

"You start to lose hope that you will find someone," Dave supplied and Gallagher nodded.

"Exactly," Gallagher agreed. "By the way you're welcome to call me Ron. I suspect that we'll be seeing a lot of each other."

"We definitely will and you can call me Dave," Dave said smiling. "Immortals do a lot of traveling and I'm sure you and Ryssa will do the same. Not in the next couple of decades of course, but after you retire."

"That actually sounds really nice," Gallagher admitted. "That's for the future though."

"So do you know how you turn someone like you Immortal?" Dave asked and Gallagher nodded.

"Ryssa explained how it was done, especially since I'm a man. She told me that mortals turn out to be an Immortals mate all the time since the Immortal population is so small."

"Not as small as it used to be, but yes, we're nothing compared to mortals who have children easily, at least mostly," Dave agreed.

"Well, at least injection works instead of me having to drink it," Gallagher said dryly, making a face.

"There is that," Dave chuckled understanding Gallagher's dislike of having to possibly drink someone else's blood, a transfusion though was a whole different matter. "Luckily, for you Spencer thought of this method and knew it had a good chance of working and Dr. DeWitt confirmed it would, said she had done it a few times, but that most older Immortals never even thought about doing it that way. She thought it was just a hole in the way older Immortals, born before the 20th century thought. I can still remember how relieved Jeremy, Spencer's brother was when he learned that."

"I don't blame Jeremy at all for being relieved," Gallagher said.

"No, neither do I," Dave agreed with a chuckle.

"I'm really glad I met her. Ryssa's such an amazing person," Gallagher said looking pensive. "I never imagined that I'd have someone to come home to until now."

"I understand that way of thinking very well," Dave said. "I was never lonely, as I always had Emily, but both of us knew something was missing. It's not that Emily and I weren't happy together for over 6 centuries before we found Jennifer, but still, JJ helped filled a void for me. That's not the way it works for most Immortals though, most of them have to wait for a long time to find the one meant for them. In a way, Ryssa is lucky. She's only just over a hundred and many Immortals don't find their mates for much longer."

Gallagher absorbed the information he was given and nodded, deciding to think about it later.

"So Ryssa was telling me that there was a way to have children, a way which can only be used only once, much earlier then what is usually normal for Immortals," Gallagher questioned.

"There is, and as far as I know it's only been used once by our family. By Spencer and his brother Jeremy the two I just mentioned and their mates actually, which are my daughter Harper and her twin Brooke. Harper has another mate named Aaron Hotchner who she met first," Dave explained.

"I see I have a lot to learn," Gallagher said.

"Our family is pretty big, much bigger than most other Immortals," Dave shrugged. "I doubt very much that you'll ever meet every single child that me and my mates happened to have."

"I'm not going to worry about it," Gallagher decided.

"You shouldn't," Dave agreed. "A lot of times even brothers and sisters don't know each other because they're born so many decades apart. They may recognize each other if they do happen to run into one or the other, since there does tend to be a commonality of features but other than that... In our case though, we had children every five years after Emily and I met JJ, unless the ladies were taking something to prevent it. That doesn't normally happen though and the only reason it did for us is because Ilithyia is pleased with us. She does grant small favors to those that please her and who are her favorites."

"Any idea why she favors your family?" Gallagher asked.

"Not really," Dave shrugged. "I'd certainly glad she does, as we found Penelope easier then we would have otherwise, because the goddess helped out as much as she could by sending all my children visions, those with the ability to receive them. We had no choice but to leave in the middle of the night as we weren't about to wait for however long the investigation took, even though we knew we would have to answer questions when we returned. So why don't I get us glasses of wine and we can talk farther while Ryssa is busy discussing wedding plans with my wives."

"Sounds good," Gallagher agreed, thinking about what he had been told. "I like a good glass of wine now and then, though I doubt I drink the brands you do as there is only so much I can afford on a cop's salary and the really expensive brand names are beyond my wallet."

"Not anymore they're not," Dave denied. "Ryssa, has plenty of money of her own. Not only is she a pediatrician, who makes plenty, her parents would've set up a trust fund for her and she would've been taught how to invest. It's a skill that most Immortals pick up so they always have plenty of money available. That's not to say that there aren't a few that never have very much money, mostly because they are stupid and impatient, though some just don't seem to have the knack for investing."

"That's good," Gallagher finally decided, though it went against his grain to sponge off his soon to be wife.

"You won't be sponging off, Ryssa," Dave said seeming to read Gallagher's thoughts, but really, it was just knowing how men in particular thought, as they wanted to be the provider. Nowadays, that wasn't such a prominent thing, but it was still an instinct with a lot of men. "You'll soon have just as much money as I'm sure Ryssa can teach you how to invest and if she can't I sure can. There's a certain knack to investing that not a lot of people have."

"That sounds really good," Gallagher said thankfully.

"You're going to live practically forever now, Ron. You're not always going to find a job you're interested in. Trust me, you can't work forever, as you have to take breaks in between, as not only would the tediousness about drive you insane after a few centuries, people would begin to notice after awhile that you weren't aging. You'll have to change jobs and cities frequently. Taking a few decades or even centuries in between allows you to spend time with Ryssa and any children and allows for your name to disappear from any computer systems you might be in, as there is no point of keeping the names of people in a database if they are dead or at least should be dead and haven't been seen or heard from in decades."

"I see what you're saying," Gallagher agreed. "Someone will have to change our data every once in awhile, it's the only way to stay under the radar."

"You don't object to that?" Dave asked curiously.

"I don't particularly like it, but if I'm going to be basically Immortal..." Gallagher paused. "In this era of technology it's the only way unless you basically become a hermit, which wouldn't be the way to go considering you're Immortal. Still, it's a relatively harmless, even if technically, you're breaking the law every time you do that or am I just assuming here?"

"You are correct actually," Dave said smiling. "It's the only way we can get by in this very high-tech society that's only becoming more so with every decade."

"I can see that," Gallagher agreed. "I'm also assuming that your wife takes care of that considering she was kidnapped for her computer skills. I can guess very well that Gregory wanted her to do backgrounds for those who would pay, though I can't see her ever getting a cent of the money that he probably charged them for doing it."

"Well, I never expect you to put the pieces together so fast," Dave said smiling again. "It's always been kind of a hobby of hers and I certainly can't object. The fact, that it brings money into is a secondary consideration, but her happiness and satisfaction is always first. We knew that her being kidnapped for her skills was possible once word got around, but since most Immortals would never consider doing such a thing it would have to be one that had gone totally insane for some reason, one that had few morals and ethics."

"Like what happened with Gregory," Gallagher suggested.

"Exactly," Dave agreed. "His mate rejected him, which is sometimes enough to make them go insane, but it depends on the Immortal in question and whether or not they have that kind of darkness within them. Some people do you know, even Immortals."

Gallagher was nodding at this for it did make sense. Ryssa had reminded him that Immortals had once been mortal just like he was now. Then their goddess had decided to save her people who were honest and hard-working when they started to drop like flies, from one of the many diseases that had been around back so many centuries ago now. It had probably been one that they likely had a cure for in this current century or maybe one that had been eradicated completely, but it was unlikely they'd every know what that disease had been, so he wasn't going to worry about it. He had other things to thing about for one thing, things that were much more pleasant.

"Yes, I understand that, as there wouldn't be so many criminals in your society unless there was something that made them turn into one. Sometimes it has to do with an abusive childhood, other times not and they just turn out bad for some reason," Gallagher agreed.

"So any idea of when the wedding will be?" Dave asked.

"No, unfortunately, I don't know when, but it probably won't be for a few months at least," Gallagher said. "My mom was thrilled when I told her I had finally met someone. She liked Ryssa immediately, which I'm glad of, because there're several things she could do to discourage me from marrying her if she didn't. I would still go ahead and do it, but then mom probably wouldn't speak to me again and we are close."

"Family is important," Dave said seriously and Gallagher nodded in agreement.

"Yes, it is, especially since my father died last year. He had a stroke, a bad one and he was just gone. I'm sure you can guess that mom was devastated. He was barely 85, which is very young really," Gallagher admitted looking melancholy.

"Back when Emily and I were born 85 was positively ancient for humans," Dave said soberly. "Many people didn't live that long. Humans were lucky to see 50 in those days."

"That was a very long time ago though," Gallagher said.

"Yes, it was, even from a Immortal's perspective," Dave agreed. "You'll always miss your father, especially since he didn't even reach halfway through a normal lifespan for mortals nowadays."

"It happens sometimes," Gallagher shrugged. "I'm only sorry that he won't be around to see me finally tie the knot. He and mom were so happy together for a very long time."

"Yes, it does happen, unfortunately, for mortals anyway," Dave agreed. "You need to concentrate on being happy with Ryssa. Perhaps you can name your firstborn son after him, which can be sooner than you think if you use the IVF process."

"I'll have to talk to Ryssa, of course, but I'm sure we'll end up doing that and have at least a couple of children, way before Immortals usually have them," Gallagher said.

"I'll look forward to being a great-grandfather again," Dave said smiling at the thought.

"I would think you would stop being excited after all this time with as many children as I'm sure you've had. Not to mention grandchildren and great-grandchildren."

"And even some great-great-great-grandchildren," Dave said smiling. "You'll never stop getting excited if you truly love children. Besides, I had myself fixed after Penelope's twins Brooke and Harper were born, so what none of us will have anymore children."

"Wow! Wasn't that a big step?" Gallagher asked.

"Yes, it was, but all four of us agreed that it was time. I'll have to tell you the whole story sometime. I never would've done it if we had not already discussed it at some length over at least a decade. It's not like I'm ever going to have children with anybody else and my wives decided that they didn't want anymore, ever. Immortals never get to the point that they can't have children, so we had quite a few over the centuries, due to being able to have them every five years, as I mentioned earlier," Dave explained.

"That certainly puts a different complexion on things," Gallagher admitted thoughtfully.

"Harper and Brooke didn't agree with what we had done when they found out, but eventually, they came to see it from our point of view. They were still young at the time, only 30, which is quite young for Immortals. It's where they stop aging completely. It's a very important rite of passage. You don't age physically from that point on, but you do emotionally and mentally of course. You're considered fully mature not only by your family, but by the goddess, so any mistakes are your own. If you betray the goddess then you face the consequences," Dave explained.

"That's just life," Gallagher said philosophically.

"Very true, though the consequences aren't so dire normally, depending on the severity of the mistake of course. Betray the goddess and you're very likely lose your Immortality and start to age normally. Believe me, a lot of Immortals can't handle that," Dave agreed.

"That makes sense," Gallagher said thoughtfully, as he took a sip of excellent wine. "If you've been Immortal ever since you were a baby and say you're 500 years old..."

"Then it would be hard to deal with the fact that you no longer have that protection. You can get into any number of scrapes like a serious car accident and come out of it okay, since your injuries heal quickly. A lot of people are reckless anyway and most of them are not Immortal," Dave said starting to really respect Gallagher more and more. "Immortals are no different really."

The two men sipped their wine and Gallagher thought it was the best he'd ever had. He could really get used to having such good alcohol and it wasn't even that the stuff he normally drank wasn't decent just not this good.

"So do you think the ladies are going to come from upstairs anytime soon?" asked Gallagher glancing up the stairs that led to the second floor.

"Probably not," Dave said. "The ladies can talk weddings for hours and I'm sure Ryssa is no different in that regard and really, my wives don't get the pleasure of discussing weddings very often. It's not like Ryssa's going to ever get divorced, since that's not possible, so I'm sure she wants to plan the perfect wedding for the two of you."

"I suppose," Gallagher agreed taking another sip of wine.

"Just go with the flow," Dave advised. "Emily and I had a handfasting, which is an ancient custom that really isn't used much anymore, except among Immortals, though it amounts to the same thing as a wedding really. JJ and I had a regular wedding, as did Penny and I even though being married to more than one person back when we met was illegal. Emily and I had met so long ago though, that the evidence of our marriage would've been long since disintegrated into dust. Nobody alive would have remembered it except for other Immortals that were actually present."

"I've never heard of a handfasting, but then, I suppose if it's a very ancient custom most people wouldn't have," Gallagher admitted.

"Not unless you like to really study ancient history, as it used to be pretty popular in certain cultures," Dave agreed. "For all I know, it might still be used in some cultures, besides among Immortals. Some people don't go for big church weddings, you know. Handfastings are just not within your frame of reference."

"That's true," Gallagher agreed. "I'd like to keep this wedding small, but I doubt Ryssa will allow me to get away with that."

"Not a chance," Dave chuckled. "Every woman in the family, unless they marry into it seem to want big and splashy when it comes to their weddings."

"I figured," Gallagher said with a resigned expression.

"Well, look at it this way, you only have to get married once," Dave said.

"That's true enough," Gallagher agreed, "so I suppose I'll have to take your suggestion and go with the flow."

"I suspect you'll enjoy yourself more than you think you will," Dave suggested.

"Probably," Gallagher agreed. "We'll see. I don't think I need to worry about it right now as it's likely months away yet. Even I know it takes time to plan weddings, especially big splashy ones. I'm not really one for big social events, but I suppose I'll have to put up with this one."

"Yeah, you will," Dave chuckled, understanding how Gallagher felt, as some people weren't ones for events with a lot of people. "I'm sure Ryssa will inform you of the details as soon as the details are worked out."

"I'm sure she will," Gallagher agreed, smiling, as he thought about his fiancé.

Dave changed the subject and started to share several more memories with his soon to be be son-in-law and Gallagher listened attentively, thinking that he was going to like being part of this family very much. He just knew that his mother and his siblings would love Ryssa's family. He would like his family and Ryssa's family to get along, as it would make life much less stressful. In a few years he and Ryssa could talk about using IVF, but at the moment he was happy just to sit here in this comfortable recliner and listen to his soon to be father-in-law's stories about things that had happened in his very long life, as he made them very funny and interesting. He might as well keep himself occupied while his fiancé was busy planning their wedding, as it wasn't like he could stop her. Besides, planning their nuptials made Ryssa happy so that should be all that mattered.

Gallagher leaned back in the recliner, as he listened to his future father-in-law feeling completely content for the first time in his life and he had a feeling that was going to become the usual thing and that was just fine with him.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	9. Chapter 9

Part 9

Epilogue 2

Dave and his wives sat in a private restaurant waiting for their guests to arrive. That the guests just happened to be the father and mother of Alan Gregory named Eamon and Caleigh was of no consequence.

"They better not have contacted us just to tell us in person that they want revenge," Penelope huffed.

"I doubt that very much, sweetie," Dave said calmly. "I guaranteed them one meeting and if I didn't like what they had to say then they would be gone, out of our lives. You know very well that most Immortals would never have done what Alan Gregory did. If I know anything about Immortals in general it's that most of them would've been appalled at what their son, grandson, nephew, brother or cousin did. It's very rare for an Immortal to go insane like that, but all of us do know that it happens, even if it depends on a certain type of circumstances."

"You know that if they were thinking about revenge the parents never would've asked for a meeting," Emily reminded her sister gently with a great deal of patience, not usually her forte. "They wouldn't want to get on our bad side or at least warn us that something was going to happen."

"I know," Penelope said more calmly, though Dave rubbing soothing circles on her back probably had something to do with that.

"I don't blame you for being upset, sweetie, considering what their son did to you," Dave said. "It's only been a few months and you're still experiencing severe nightmares and flashbacks. If Alan's parents can support what happened to you then they'll face the consequences if they go to far."

"And they will have warned us that they're coming, which wouldn't be smart in that case," JJ added.

"I truly don't think revenge is their goal, honey," Dave said in that same soothing tone. "I suspect that they want to apologize for what their son did to you. I know I could be wrong, but I very much doubt it."

Penelope thought Dave was probably right, but she still worried.

She couldn't relax, hadn't been able to since she was kidnapped. She knew that Alan Gregory was dead, even if she had never actually seen the body herself. She didn't need to see it, as she knew that Dave would not have let Gregory live, so it wasn't really him that caused her to be unable to relax. It was fear of reprisals from those related to him. His parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles siblings, nieces, nephews and cousins. She knew very well that sometimes family supported those that had done such an atrocious thing, though she didn't see that being the case this time. Still, she didn't want her family torn apart by someone wanting revenge.

She knew very well that Dave would handle it if any of Gregory's relatives dared try to come after her or anyone else in the family for the death of their relation.

She was also well aware that her nightmares and flashbacks didn't help her not be so tense and not her usual cheerful self, which of course, was affecting her immediate family. She knew very well that Dave, JJ and Emily didn't mind her attitude, because she had been through a horrific experience and they knew she would eventually get over it.

Hopefully, once this meeting was over, if it went well, her nightmares and flashbacks would began to fade. She certainly hoped so.

Penelope had no time to respond to Dave's words, as their guests arrived.

"Welcome," Dave greeted, soberly, as he shook both their hands. "Please have a seat."

Dave went from casually relaxed to more alert in a heartbeat. Though he still appeared relaxed, anybody who knew him well, like his family, knew he was now ready for anything, even though his position in his seat only shifted a little.

"Would you like anything to drink or to eat before we get started?" JJ offered.

"Some hot tea would be good thank you," Caleigh said politely and JJ nodded.

"You go ahead," Dave said to JJ. "Tell my daughter that I'll have some tea too, but iced."

It was one of Dave's numerous children that owned the restaurant they were currently in. She was just as good a cook as her father, but had decided that she wanted to own a restaurant, as unlike Dave she liked cooking for people besides her family. The family of course, had helped her get started.

Both Penelope and Emily put in their orders as well and then got down to business.

"So what can I do for you Mr. and Mrs. Gregory?" Dave asked politely. "You are the ones that were requested this meeting."

"We just wanted to apologize to you and your mates for what happened with our son," Mr. Gregory began.

"We taught him better, but after he lost Lucy, due to his own actions no less, he went a little insane. We hope that our son's actions won't adversely affect you or us," Mrs. Gregory added.

"Alright, it's clear to me that you taught the son the law of Immortals," Dave said while the others remained silent, as this was Dave's show. "You taught him what was acceptable and what was not. That he went insane is not your fault, so I don't blame you. Immortals have been known to go insane on very rare occasions but usually, it's only after they lose a mate, depending on circumstances. Your son has met his fate and while I'm truly sorry for ending his life, what he did to Penelope had to be paid back. If you had seen what kind of condition my wife was in when we finally rescued her..."

Dave closed his eyes and the vivid memory of how Penelope had looked when they had finally rescued her came to the front of his mind.

"I can forgive a great deal, because I know that Immortals are very like normal people, with their own faults and gifts. People are not perfect, something I'm very well aware of, but what your son did was totally unacceptable."

"We're still dealing with the consequences even now," Emily added, as JJ came back into the room, placing the tray she was carrying on the table and passing everyone's drinks orders around.

"Your son also kidnapped her from a public place, and got the authorities involved, which is something that is forbidden."

"We know," Mrs. Gregory said looking rather sad. She couldn't blame the Rossis at all for what they had done. Her son had kidnapped one of David Rossis mates. He would've known something was wrong immediately through the bond they shared and might not have discovered what that was until the police showed up at his door.

"Your son treated me worse then a slave," Penelope spoke up for the first time. "He seemed to believe I'd do whatever he wanted so long as he threatened to beat me, which he did anyway, even when I had done nothing. I think he wanted to prove who was top dog in case I even thought about disobeying. He also fed me on food not fit for pigs and there was so little of it that it was barely enough to keep me from starving, if I was able to starve. I believe the only reason he fed me at all was so I would have the energy to do what he wanted. He never even arranged for other clothes for me or for me to be able to take a shower. He seemed to believe I could live in the outfit I was kidnapped in for the next few centuries. Hell, he barely let me use the toilet too afraid I would find some way to escape. I would've been too afraid to take a shower anyway, as there were no females in his band of goons, and I was to afraid of being raped or at least sexually assaulted if he had provided shower facilities. Let's not mention the times he beat me just for the hell of it. He had a very low opinion of females in general and I am not sure if that was true before his mate rejected him or if it happened afterwards. He seemed to genuinely believe that he could treat me like a piece of shit, that I had no feelings or emotions of my own. He thought females were weak and helpless, but he soon came to regret making such stupid assumptions."

"I understand that you raised him to respect people and the goddess," Dave added once he was sure his wife was done. "I also understand that his mate rejecting him changed him for the worse. I bear you no ill will, provided that you let things go. No coming after us, which includes, any children, grandchildren, cousins, nieces, nephews aunts, uncles and grandparents. Anybody who is even remotely related to you. This is the only warning you're going to get. Come after me and mine and I'll deal with it."

"We understand," said Mr. Gregory. "We have no intention of seeking revenge. What you did was only right and proper and we both know that, so no matter how painful it is for us we bear you and your family no ill will."

"Good, so long as you remember that we won't have any problems. I'm not one to hold a grudge against the entire family for the actions of one," Dave assured them.

The Gregorys slumped in relief at that.

"What happened was a tragedy," JJ who had retaken her original seat added. "Let's not make it more of one. All of us understand very well that sometimes bad things happen to those that don't deserve it. I don't think that your son realized that his actions would've made him lose his Immortality, since kidnapping another, especially another Immortal's mate, is absolutely forbidden."

"We already had a plan in place for such an eventuality, as we knew very well it was possible that some Immortal would want to kidnap, Penny for her talents, so they could make money off her her hard work. She does backgrounds for others of our kind for a very nice fee, and your son believed he could force her to do it for him while taking all the money that should've been hers," Emily said.

"He treated her worse then mud on the bottom of his shoe," Dave growled. "He beat her on several occasions for no reason, she lost at least 15 pounds in the less than two weeks she was his captive, weight she has just now recently regained. She was dirty and stinky and still in the same outfit she had been kidnapped in and while I know that's rather minor all the rest of it certainly isn't, especially not when combined with the rest. I'm afraid your son sealed his own fate, not just by kidnapping her, but by not treating her decently. Apparently, he never learned that you catch more flies with, honey than with vinegar."

"She has admitted that she would've killed herself if she had not known her family was coming for her," JJ added soberly. "As it is, we're still dealing with nightmares and flashbacks, even three months later. I hate to imagine what she would be like if your son had had her for longer."

"Your son seemed to genuinely believe that we would just forget about her in time, even though we've been together for many centuries," Dave said gestured to Emily and JJ. "His exact words to Penny were. There is no way that Rossi needs three mates. They'll forget about you in time. I'm not sure if he totally forgot about the bond between mates or if he didn't understand what it truly meant, not that it matters."

Both Gregorys winced and looked extremely sober. Their son had always been arrogant and had trouble controlling his temper, but he'd totally lost the plot when he had kidnapped David Rossi's mate. It didn't matter that Rossi had more then one, as that's just the way it was sometimes, when the goddess favored you. When he had kidnapped Penelope Rossi he had committed blasphemy against Ilithyia in particular. If their son had been in his right mind they believed that he never would have done so. It was said that Ilithyia always watched over those she favored, even though she loved all Immortal people, since the originals had been created by her.

Both the Gregorys believed that Jennifer Rossi was right that their son would have lost his Immortality if he had avoided being captured and put to death. There was no way that Ilithyia would let someone who had committed such a heinous deed keep on being Immortal. There had to be some punishment for those Immortals that went against Ilithyia's strictures and unfortunately, their son had broken one of the most important and there was no way that the goddess would let that pass without consequences. They shuddered to think how Rossi would've reacted if his mate had actually died and that didn't even take his other two wives actions into consideration. Rossi was a powerful figure in the Immortal world, partly because Ilithyia favored him, but also because he was well over 1000 years old, nearly 2000 actually and therefore, one of the oldest remaining Immortals who had not decided to either hide from the world or end their existence. Rossi, still got out there in the real world, even though it was ever changing. Sometimes an Immortal simply couldn't take the ever changing world and so decided to retreat from it. Sometimes that was with a mate and sometimes it wasn't. Those without a mate often decided just to end their existences after a few hundred years and those with one lasted much longer.

What was worse though, was that their son had dragged others into his schemes, which meant that they suffered the same fate, the only difference being that their deaths would have likely been quick and painless, instead of prolonged and as painful as the Rossi family could make it.

"I tried to talk to him about controlling his temper more than once," Mrs. Gregory admitted with a sigh. "I know that one of my brothers, his uncle, tried to do the same."

"I also tried to do the same on several occasions," Mr. Gregory said. "It just didn't do any good. I kept telling him that he couldn't lose his temper over every little thing, just because he was annoyed or angry or frustrated, as that was just life, that he needed to learn to control it."

"If he had been able to do so, then it's likely that his mate wouldn't have rejected him and therefore, Penelope's kidnapping never would've taken place," Emily said soberly.

"I'm not sure if he was just incapable of controlling his temper and he tried or just ignored the advice quite a few of the family gave him so never put any effort into it," Mrs. Gregory admitted looking sad.

"I suppose we'll never know," Mr. Gregory said.

"I also forgive you, as what happened with your son was not your fault," Penelope told the Gregorys. "You taught him right from wrong and Ilithyia's laws that's all anyone can do for their children. Those children must at some point decide what kind of people they want to be and while a parent's influence has great impact the decision is still their own."

"Thank you," Mr. Gregory said gratefully.

"You're quite welcome," Penelope said with a smile. "While I never want to go through a similar experience I do understand that not everyone is the same and some just go down the wrong path, no matter anyone's best efforts to prevent it. This is just as true for mortals that is it is for Immortals, since Immortals came from mortals originally."

"I know you'll always mourn your son, just as I would if I lost one of my children and this is only right and proper. Just because your son, Alan committed such acts does not mean that he won't always be your son and that you won't always love him," Dave said graciously, shaking both Gregorys hands in farewell. "We'll leave you to continue to mourn your son in peace. May he be reincarnated sometime in the future if Ilithyia is kind."

It was the right thing to say as both Gregorys left with a nod of respect to Dave and his mates.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

"Well, that went well," Penelope commented once they were on their way home.

"See, I told you that's probably what would happen," Dave said calmly, as he allowed Emily to drive, while he sat in the back seat with Penelope's head on his shoulder.

"You were right," Penelope agreed, cuddling close.

"Maybe now you'll finally get past these nightmares and intense flashbacks," Emily said from the front seat.

"Maybe now that you know the Gregorys aren't going to come after our family for revenge you'll finally be able to put the incident behind you," Dave gently suggested.

"That's what I hope," Penelope said softly. "I hate being an invalid, how you all walk so softly around me and I hate how I keep waking you up in the middle of the night just because of my nightmares."

"Hey, hey, none of feeling guilty. We don't mind it," JJ told her sister firmly.

"No, we don't, as you're the one that was kidnapped and mistreated so severely. I can understand that Gregory had no idea that we would be able to find you, as a lot of Immortals don't pay attention to the advances of technology, but some things should be common sense," Dave agreed. "Gregory should've realized that Emily, JJ and I would've torn the world apart looking for you and never given up looking."

"Most mortals don't pay attention to the advances of technology either, so it's not the least unusual," Penelope commented, as Dave stroked her hair with one hand tenderly.

"Well, that was Gregory's undoing in this case, as those visions that our seers got helped too," Emily said.

"Yes, they did," Dave said. "I'm grateful to the goddess that she helped out as much as she could. However, Gregory should've known that he would've had to pay for what he did to you, even if that was simply Ilithyia taking away his Immortality, so he aged at a normal rate. He had the same lessons that all Immortal children receive, which means he knew the laws that our kind have to live by. He might have held Penelope prisoner for a few decades, but eventuality he would've noticed that he was aging and would likely have realized that he really didn't have as much time to spend his ill-gotten gains as he probably hoped."

"One of the men he hired would have eventually noticed and likely mentioned it to him. Besides, he wouldn't've been the only one aging, as the other men that Gregory hired would have lost their Immortality too. I doubt even Gregory would be so oblivious that he wouldn't notice that his men were getting older after 10 years or so," Penelope pointed out.

"That's a very good point," Emily said, as she drove into their neighborhood, which was very affluent.

"Yes, it is," Dave said knowing they would be home in just a few minutes. "To get back to your comment of a few minutes ago, Penny you will never be a bother. Right now, you're just going through some things, because you were kidnapped and treated cruelly and inhumanely by your kidnapper. You'll get over them and get back to normal, but mental healing is a slow process for everyone, even Immortals. I've seen this time and time again. Don't feel guilty for waking us up because of your nightmares, as it's just your subconscious trying to get you to deal with events far sooner than you're ready to do so. Eventually they'll go away and even if that takes the next year then that's okay. What Gregory did to you was inhumane and you're bound to have a few scars from that, even if that's mental and emotional ones instead of physical in your case."

"I don't know how anybody could've turned out like that, as his parents seem so nice and normal," JJ commented.

"Alan Gregory always had a darkness within him, JJ," Dave told the woman in the front seat. "Some people do, even if they come from perfectly good stock and had a good childhood. That darkness might have been contained if his mate hadn't rejected him and I believe that was the pivotal event that changed him from a man already arrogant, uncaring of others feelings for the worst. However, Gregory always had those traits as part of his personality, they just weren't as noticeable until after his mate rejected him. His mate's rejection might have started him down the path to where he decided kidnapping Penny was a good idea, but those traits that made him believe it was okay to do so were always part of his personality. That kind of arrogance and sadistic attitude just doesn't pop out of nowhere."

"I have to agree with Dave on this one," Emily put in. "Both Dave and I have seen this kind of thing again and again. Some people are just arrogant enough to believe they can do anything they want and get away with it. Yes, in this case, Gregory was insane, but people do things like kidnapping or threatening someone for their own purposes and they're perfectly sane when they do so."

"None of us are naïve and don't know that there are evil people in the world and not just misguided," Penelope added. "Of course, I've always known that not everybody is on the right side of the law, but there is a huge difference from somebody trying to steal my hard work to somebody kidnapping me and making money off it while treating me as less than human. The first is wrong, but most of those people aren't evil, just misguided and arrogant to assume they can get away with it. The second though are evil and wrong in a lot more ways than the first."

"There are different degrees of right and wrong, as there are different shades of gray in nearly everything," Dave agreed. "Just think of your boyfriend that beat you so badly back before you met us. You had done nothing to get beaten and simply got a promotion with a raise. Your boyfriend beat you because you refused to take him back after you threw him out on his ear for hitting you. He didn't want you making more money than he did and while that's still a common thing that men get upset about, even in this century that doesn't mean it's not wrong."

"And also think of that second man that was on drugs and beat you just to get at what was in your wallet years later," Emily added.

"That's a good point," JJ admitted. Both those incidents had been so long ago that she never thought about them anymore, but her family sometimes used them as examples to remind that that was evil in the world.

"You know my opinion of men who beat a woman for any reason at all," Dave added. "Gregory would've gotten off more easily if he had only treated Penny decently, fed her adequately, given her a decent bed, allowed her to shower, bought her several decent outfits and definitely not beaten her. He treated her as subhuman, with no feelings or emotions of her own, but only because he figured that we'd never be able to find him."

"Now that was a mistake that not only cost him his life, but got him tortured before he was put out of his misery," Emily said with grim satisfaction, as she pulled onto their street.

"Emily's right you know," Dave told JJ and Penelope. "I still would've ended his life for kidnapping one of my mates, but it would have been much quicker and far less painful."

"You know I thought I would feel guilty for letting you torture Gregory," Penelope commented. "The weird thing is though I don't. I suppose I could still be in shock from what happened."

"It's more likely that you just accepted that we were going to torture him anyway for what he did to you," Dave told her gently. "Your giving me permission, simply relieved any guilt I might have felt in making you unhappy with me by going against your wishes, especially considering the ordeal you had just gone through at the time. I thought your reaction was perfectly understandable considering the circumstances and I'm glad you don't feel guilty because you shouldn't. You had basically been tortured for nearly 2 weeks before we came to your rescue, starved, beaten, not given a decent place to sleep... Well, you know what you went through, so there's no point of going through the entire list. You might have moderated his punishment somewhat by telling me to tell everyone that you didn't want Gregory to be tortured for more than a week, but that doesn't mean that we didn't do a lot in that amount time. Technically, we could've kept torturing him for months or even years, but that would've displeased the goddess and interrupted our lives, so we wouldn't have gone that far. Gregory got what he was due for what he did and went home to the goddess. He's in her hands now and I'm sure she was waiting to chastise him for his actions."

"I can very easily imagine that," Penelope giggled, feeling totally relaxed by the time Emily pulled into their own driveway and stopped the engine.

"I'm sure you can," Dave said smiling, as he helped Penelope out of the car. "Let's go inside, shall we? I have some plans."

"Don't you always," JJ commented smiling, glad to see her sister so relaxed, as that had been a rare occurrence in the last three months. What Gregory had done had affected more than Penelope, it had affected all of them not that Gregory would have cared if it had or not if he had known.

"Of course I do. I have to keep our lives fresh and interesting after all," Dave responded with a genuine smile, which had been rare on his face in the last three months. He was definitely hoping that knowing the Gregorys weren't going to be after their family for revenge, would allow Penny to relax more and start to forget about what'd happened. It was a hope he knew that the whole family shared, one where Penelope put the incident totally behind her and got on with her life.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~


	10. Chapter 10

Happy birthday to me! I'm 43 today!

Part 10

Six months later

"This is exactly what I needed," Penelope sighed in content, as she lay on her back on an enormous floaty in the middle of a gigantic pool, that was all theirs for however, long they decided to stay today. This was exactly what she needed to forget about what had happened less than a year ago, to be able to relax with her family. Dave, Emily and JJ had been great over the last few months and been very patient with her intense nightmares and flashbacks. As Dave had told her more than once lately they loved her and her nightmares and flashbacks were not her fault. They could always make up the sleep once she was better if they needed to. She still felt a little guilty for what she was putting her family through, but she also knew that it wasn't her fault, as she hadn't asked to be kidnapped, especially not in front of more than a dozen people.

While the nightmares and flashbacks had faded a lot after the meeting with the Gregorys they still occurred, just not with the same frequency, which had relieved everyone.

Finally, Dave decided that it was time for a holiday. Somewhere they could all totally relax as far away as they could get from their home. He was hoping that Penelope would totally forget about what Alan Gregory had done to her and just have fun with her family.

The idea had worked marvelously and she hadn't had a single nightmare or flashback ever since they had come to the nice, warm beaches of Tahiti, with pure white sands.

Dave had of course, made reservations at a five star hotel, one that had an excellent reputation. The hotel of course, had a nice gigantic pool that was their's for the rest of the day. Dave had paid the people in charge extra to make it so. Here in Tahiti she had been able to finally relax since she was so far from home and once she had the nightmares and flashbacks had faded at least for now.

"I'm glad to see you enjoying yourself, sweetie," Dave said as he was floating beside her. "You haven't had a single nightmare or flashback since we got here."

"I'm certainly glad for the break," Penelope said. "Do you think they're gone for good?"

"We can hope," Dave said. "I'm not entirely sure that we should go back to Chicago, other than to pack up our things and move somewhere else. Maybe avoiding Chicago for the next few centuries will be the way to go. Really though, instead of going so far as avoiding the place you were kidnapped you really should see a psychologist, an Immortal one."

"I probably should," Penelope finally agreed, taking her husband's suggestion seriously. "I don't believe that I'll ever be able to get over what happened without something major. Coming here to Tahiti was an excellent idea, but as much as all of us are enjoying it we still have to get back to real life eventually."

"Not necessarily," Dave disagreed. "We could find some place here in Tahiti if we needed too, if that's what would make you happy and help you remain nightmare free. Yes, this is a vacation destination, but normal people also live here, ones who have jobs and families. I'm sure we could pick up the official language in time, even if most of the people speak English. We could avoid the States for the next few hundred years if we had too."

"I don't think we need to go that far," Penelope said touched. "Perhaps moving away from Chicago is the thing to do. Maybe move to somewhere like Mexico. We've never lived in Mexico."

"That's possible to," Dave agreed. "We'll discuss it with Emily and JJ as soon as we're all together again. If moving will help with your nightmares then that's what we will do."

"We haven't really been in Chicago more than a few years though," Penelope worried.

"Do you really think that matters, honey?" Dave asked his mate looking over at her, despite the sun being directly in his eyes when he did so. "You really think I care if we move, even though we just moved there less than five years ago? What matters is giving you peace of mind, allowing you and everyone else to get back to normal. Alan Gregory disrupted so many things, not that he would've cared if he had known. He disrupted your peace of mind, he disrupted our family, he disrupted our peace and quiet. He caused the whole family to worry about you when you were kidnapped and not just me, Emily and JJ, but also those that got visions of what happened and those we contacted. I seriously doubt we'll ever live in Chicago again and maybe not even in the state of Illinois, as Gregory likely ruined that for us. I doubt very much that any of us will be able to totally forget what happened there. In a few decades we can come and see if being in Chicago has any ill effects on you, but I would give it at least a hundred years."

"We should come for a week or so, just to test the waters," Penelope murmured.

"Exactly," Dave agreed, as he grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Now, why don't we get out of this pool for now and go meet JJ and Emily? We can discuss moving away from Chicago."

"That sounds really good," Penelope said. Penelope looked at Dave and into his kind ancient eyes and knew she had been very lucky to be the mate of a man who always treated her like a queen. Dave understood so many things. He understood that going back to Chicago was unlikely to let her be able to relax completely so that her nightmares and flashbacks vanished. Chicago was where she had been kidnapped after all and even if they moved to a totally different neighborhood she doubted very much that she'd be able be relax completely. Perhaps in a few decades, as Dave suggested, they'd be able to come back and see some of the things that they hadn't gotten around to seeing this time, as Chicago had many attractions. However, it might be that she at least would never be comfortable in Chicago for more than a few weeks at a time, but she'd see. She figured it was just too soon after Gregory for her to be comfortable there. She was constantly looking over her shoulder when she wasn't at home and luckily, for her she was married to a man that more than understood the trauma she had undergone, as he had vast experience with such things.

"Thanks," Penelope said.

Dave said nothing, but more than understood, that his mate was having trouble expressing herself at the moment. His, Penelope had never had anything like what had a occurred less than a year ago. She'd never been beaten or starved, her home life as she grew had been normal and her parents and siblings loving. Once she had grown and moved to the big city, she had been able to take care of herself and had never had anything so atrocious happen to her. While he and his three wives had had a few serious scrapes over the years it had been nothing like what had occurred recently.

The two of them took their floaties out of the pool and put them in the appropriate place, before walking back to their bungalow hand-in-hand.

~~~Dave, Emily, JJ and Penelope~~~

"Dave's right, if moving away from Chicago will give you peace of mind and stop the flashbacks and nightmares, then that's what we should do. While they aren't as frequent since we talked to Alan Gregory's parents you still get them far too often," JJ said immediately, after Dave and Penelope explained exactly what they had discussed. "It's clear that your nightmares at least haven't stopped and perhaps moving somewhere else will make them go away. You certainly haven't had any nightmares here."

"Or flashbacks," Emily added. "I agree that if moving someplace away from Chicago will stop your nightmares and flashbacks then it will be well worth doing so."

"It will also take me away from the people that know what happened and keep asking me questions about how I am, which doesn't help me forget," Penelope admitted. "People don't realize that I've been through a horrible experience, because they've never been through something similar. Really though, it should be common sense."

"They don't realize that they're bringing up bad memories, which doesn't help your nightmares, so it's no wonder you have flashbacks right in public sometimes," Dave added, looking contrite. "They don't realize that there is really so much violence in the world and that human beings are not always nice. To them kidnapping doesn't really happen in real life, just on TV or if it does, it happens far way. They never figure it can happen to them just to other people. If you had told me about what happened then I would've suggested moving somewhere else sooner. I never thought about the fact that you might run into someone or even several someones that saw you be kidnapped. My mistake has caused you to suffer more than necessary."

"It's is not your mistake, it is mine. You were already worried and I didn't want to worry you even more, but because I said nothing about what happened at the salon where I get my hair done you now think it's your fault that my nightmares haven't vanished by now," Penelope admitted ashamed.

"Keeping stuff from your family is not the way our relationship works," Dave told her in a serious tone, placing his hands on her shoulders gently. "You know this. All of us have a right to worry about one of our number that has been through such a horrible experience. I can understand that you didn't want us to worry even more about you considering what happened less them a year ago, but whether you want to bother us or not you still need to tell us when something like that happens so that we can at least discuss it and make some decisions. One of us might have suggested moving sooner if only you had told us what happened when you went out alone once we got you back home."

"I have to agree with Dave that your nightmares might have vanished a long time ago if you had told us," Emily said. "I know you want to get back to being independent like you were before and I for one can't blame you, but you also have to realize that you're not completely well yet. Keeping stuff from us is not the way to go, even though I know you were trying to protect us as much as you could."

"While your intentions in protecting us might've been well intentioned we simply don't keep things from each other, especially something so major," Dave added in a gentle tone.

"I know," said Penelope hanging her head ashamed of her actions now, even though she had been trying to not worry her family anymore than they already were. She should've known better though, as the four of them shared everything, as Dave had made it clear back when they had gotten together that there was no keeping major secrets, especially not one that concerned one of their healths or happiness. If one of them was upset then the others deserved to know why. If one of them had been sexually molested by someone, even after the one asking was told no then you definitely didn't keep it to yourself. For one thing you couldn't hide that kind of thing from your family, especially not one as close as they were. She doubted she could've hidden something like what happened at the beauty salon if all of them hadn't trusted her to tell them of any major issues. Her family had likely put down any changes in her routine and personality to what had happened due to Gregory.

"Moving to a new location has been known to get rid of a person's nightmares depending on the reason for them. Somewhere far away, another city nowhere near where that person was living. That person does so because there is nobody in that new place that knows what happened to them, like being kidnapped, as in your case or being severely beaten and a knife used on my stomach like in mine," JJ said. "You already know that I moved far way from where I was living after my boyfriend assaulted me. The nightmares I experienced were terrible, but once I moved someplace new and settled in they mostly vanished, mostly because I felt safe."

"I had forgotten," Penelope admitted.

"I'm not surprised it was so long ago. I had mostly forgotten about what happened, mostly because I've been so happy, at least until one of you reminds me for a reason," JJ said. "You use it as an example to remind me that there is evil in the world, something I did just a few months back when we were talking after you had been rescued."

"I should have told you," Penelope admitted.

"Yes, you should have," Dave told her in a gentle understanding tone. "You will promise all of us that from now on you will not keep important things from us in a misguided attempt to not worry us anymore then we already were, not for any reason that may pop up in the future. It is our right to worry about each other when one of us is not well and it doesn't matter the reason that is."

"None of us expected something like what happened to you to actually happen again, but it's still possible," Emily added. "While I doubt anybody will attempt to ever kidnap you or any of us again you also never know."

"No Immortal will try something similar for a very long time as I made sure the story of what happened was spread far and wide among the Immortal community, just in case there were others like Gregory that had lost their mate so decided kidnapping Penny, so they could make money off her, was a good idea," Dave said in obvious satisfaction.

"I would have preferred as few people knew about what happened as possible," Penelope said, trying to not be upset, as it was a done deal and there was no changing it.

"I know very well that is your natural inclination, but this will protect you far more effectively then any of us could do alone," Dave told his mate gently. "Spreading the story, through the Immortal community will make others of our kind think twice or even three times, before considering pulling something similar, as I spared no details of what I was willing to do to protect what is mine. While it's unlikely there are many like Gregory that lost their mate due to their own actions, you never know. This will make you safer in the long run, then any of us could do."

"There could be more like Gregory and even if there is not right now, there likely will be in the future. Dave's actions will protect all of us not just you," Emily said and Penelope nodded, understanding the motivation behind Dave's actions. She still wasn't happy about it, but she did understand.

"You have just experienced an excellent example that Immortals can go bad and while most of them are just ordinary people living they're lives quietly that doesn't mean that what happened with Gregory can't happen again. I admit it's not likely, but you also have to remember that we basically live forever and not just a single mortal lifetime," JJ said.

"Which means while being kidnapped a second time isn't likely to happen to a mortal that doesn't mean it can't happen to one of us," Dave said. "If our lifespan was the same as a mortal's, well, then it would be unlikely that we'd be kidnapped more than once, depending on the reason for the kidnapping, but only if it ended well and the kidnappee wasn't killed for whatever reason."

"You are trying to say that it's possible it could happen again. That just because it isn't too likely, doesn't mean it's not possible," Penelope said.

"That's exactly what we're trying to say," Emily agreed. "Of course, this includes mortals as well."

"But most mortals don't even know she exists and the ones that do know nothing about what she does. Most mortals don't know that we are extremely wealthy because we don't act like it. They know we're well off, but that's different from being a zillionaire. I'm sure if some mortals knew how much money we have in super discreet institutions all over the world, they'd come up with some scheme to get as much of it as they could. This is why we don't brag about it or really even talk about how money we have, as we don't want a repeat of the incident of what happened to Penny."

"Yeah, I can see that very easily," JJ admitted. "A lot of people are greedy and don't mind stealing from someone instead of earning it themselves or at least inheriting it."

"Which is why we don't brag about our status. You know what would happen if one of us was kidnapped, though it's more likely to be one of you ladies."

"You'd have to kill the person involved," Penelope said.

"Exactly," Dave agreed. "The cops wouldn't understand why we just didn't leave it to them to find whichever one of us had been kidnapped, but then, we can't tell them about the Immortality thing like we did Gallagher. The one that kidnapped you might not know that we're Immortal and not mortal, but they could find out if they held whoever it was long enough."

"Technically, we could tell a mortal about the Immortality thing," Emily commented, "but I agree, it's not a very good idea, as how do we know how that person will react?"

"Well, yes, technically," Dave agreed. "But that's only if they find out about the kidnapping, because it's not like we're going to report it to them. Hopefully, it won't be like when Gallagher got involved because of Gregory's idiocy."

"Gallagher's involvement turned out to be a good thing. He and Ryssa are getting married next month," Penelope pointed out and the others agreed.

"Yes, it did, but I doubt very much that kind a thing will ever happen again," JJ said.

"True, it's doubtful that kind of thing will ever be repeated, and I really hope something like one of you being kidnap never happens again, but unfortunately, it's possible," Dave said.

"I promise from now on I'll talk to you about anything serious," Penelope said. "I knew from the beginning that I should've said something and my conscious sure did nag me because I didn't."

"But you didn't want to worry us even more," Dave said repeating what Penelope had said earlier. "It's over and done with and you're forgiven so long as you learn from it."

"I have," Penelope promised.

"Good! That's all any of us can ask for," Dave said, hugging Penelope close and kissing her forehead.

"Let's talk about something more cheerful like Ron and Ryssa's wedding, that's taking place in three weeks," Penelope suggested.

"And that we're all looking forward too," JJ said smiling. "I admit that Ron's been really good with Ryssa."

"Yes, he has, and I'm happy to welcome him to the family," Dave agreed. "I suspect we'll become good friends just like Aaron and I are."

"Despite the fact that you threatened him at first," Emily reminded him.

"So sue me! I was really worried about Ryssa and how she would handle being rejected by her mate. Just look at what happened to Alan Gregory after all," Dave said.

"Yes, but you didn't even give him anytime to absorb the news. It had to be shocking to him just like it's shocking to all mortals who learn that they are mate of Immortals," JJ gently chided him. "I know Ryssa tends to just bring out our protective instincts, but still, there were better ways to handle the situation. You're lucky that the detective handled it so well, as a lot of people would've taken offense."

"I know and I already apologized to him, which he accepted so let's drop it. Ron understands my reasons for doing so, so there's no need to keep bringing it up," Dave said.

"I'll simply add this before I drop it and that is Ryssa's not the type to do what Gregory did. She doesn't have that darkness within her soul to do something so callous, cruel and thoughtless. She cares about others too much to do something like that, feelings that Gregory didn't possess. He enjoyed beating me just for the hell of it, I could tell. I mean you don't deny someone the basics for living, decent food, clothes and so on, unless you don't think of them as human," Penelope said. "I know I was asleep when the incident took place, but I've certainly heard enough about it to understand what happened."

"She could do what most Immortals do after they lose their mate, though rather that's to death or rejection. That's actually the likely possibility," Dave said.

"A horrible thought," JJ shuddered. "Let's be grateful that the detective didn't reject our granddaughter and be glad they are getting married. An event we're all looking forward too."

Ronan Gallagher was already Immortal, as that had been done months ago right after he had gotten engaged to Ryssa.

The others agreed with that wholeheartedly and the talk turned much more cheerful, as they talked about the upcoming marriage of the detective that had been assigned to Penelope's kidnapping to their granddaughter Ryssa.

The two might never have met if Penelope hadn't been kidnapped, so at least something good had come out of something so horrible.

Dave simply sat back and smiled, as his wives chatted about the upcoming wedding in a few weeks and knew that they would pull through what happened to Penny less than a year ago as a family. Penelope's nightmares and flashbacks would eventually fade, especially if they moved away from Chicago where the kidnapping had occurred.

He felt more hope for the future then he had in nearly a year and to him that was a very positive sign that his family would finally put such a terrible event behind them and get back to normal.


End file.
